
So, you're dead. Shame, that.
But on the other hand, it's actually kind of nice.
When you "wake" in some odd version of it, you'll find yourself lying on a rather plush bed. It's cozy and warm and just soft enough to tempt anyone back into sleep. The room is equally nice, if small, and when you turn and open the curtains to look out the window, you will see... wait, is that the town?
It is, actually. The town is laid out quite simply across the window and no matter how many times you may bang or wave through the window, no one seems to notice you. If you're smart enough to give up the venture and leave the small bedroom, you will notice that, of course, you are on the train.
The train that, is actually pretty fancy.
Moving through it, past the sleeping cabins and through to the main carts, you will find a dining car with fine dishware and meals of all kinds made at a push of a button or a request given to the air. They'll appear, freshly made and ready to eat at the table of your choice with any drink you could want. There truly doesn't seem to be any limits when it comes to the luxury of the meal.
There is also a bathhouse car with private bathrooms and saunas to fit up to four. Even one rather large room containing a small pool/hot tub of sorts is available for just about anyone to take a dip. It's kind of outlandish, honestly.
Then the lounge car, with its library and plush armchairs and couches. A pool table, a darts board, even a small area dedicated to painting. There's a bar too, fully stocked and ready for anyone who needs a drink. All it would require is a request from the bartender who... looks surprisingly familiar?
The Sheriff is there, much cleaner cut than his counterpart outside of the train. He looks up mildly at any arrivals, giving them a nod of greeting before going back to organizing bottles or setting cigars out for a smoke. He doesn't seem to be surprised at all by anyone who appears. Just... ready to serve them, whatever they may wish.
It all sort of seems okay for a moment, until you realize you're just here to wait for the game to end. Awkward. |
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Good dogs deserve good praise! So who was it that did you in? [ Speaking of praise and punishment... ]
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Mr. Barnham. [ A SIGH. she's talked to some people about it by now, and she knows the condition that they all have to die to go home, but honestly, STILL ] He drugged me to sleep. I didn't know how he actually killed me until we watched the trial today.
[ sure is weird hearing you were shot to death. ]
I ... I'm not mad about what he did. I just hope that, somehow... he ends up trusting the others with what he knows.
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[ One has to wonder how Barnham hasn't been suspected yet, with so many of his friends dying... and one even at his hand! ]
Well, if you're not mad... [ Again, Barnham is also doing them a favour, it's easy to forget it in a twisted way. The fact that it was painless makes Claire less likely to teach the man a lesson. ]
--oh, by the way. Do you still have the thing I gave you before they whacked me?
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[ That gets an uncertain look. But his question puts her mind elsewhere, and--
--she ends up looking guilty. ]
I ... I had your whistle and Tarvek's pocket watch on me when I died. Whoever searched my body probably has them. I'm really sorry, Felix. I couldn't bring anything with me. But ... I left some letters, and I'm hoping Damian will hold onto my things. He'll keep an eye on them, if he has them.
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Hey, don't look so gloomy! If this Damian fella has it then I'm sure it's gonna reach us eventually. After all, we can't leave until everyone's on board.
Once that's taken care of, I'm gonna need your help with something, okay?
[ Claire? Needing help?? In what world... ]
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[ ... she lets it happen, though, lifting her hands only to try and flatten her hair again as she blinks up at him. ]
... my help? [ A blink. ] With what?
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[ Yes... Hal allowed him to operate the train. ]
However, as I'm no longer the owner of the whistle, I'd like you to use it once everyone's aboard. Once the signal goes off, I'll fire up the old train and make all the stops until everyone's home. Sound good?
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[ wtf ]
I ... are you really sure?
[ Whole Ass has been both good and bad for her self-esteem. She no longer wants to be forgotten - she wants to keep existing. She wants to live. But she's also come to believe, for many different reasons, that she's kind of stupid, and still very worthless. The idea of being valued for herself, in really any way, still kind of surprises her. ]
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[ Once again, his logic is kind of skewed. One could argue that the whistle isn't even required, but Claire respects the locomotive traditions like it's a religion. He really isn't going to start the train unless she does the thing, so his quirkiness only ends in Xion having even more value than she might have thought. ]
I can count on you, yes?
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... of course!
[ With sudden life, and a great deal of warmth. She'll ... never be able to express how much this means to her. ]
... hey, Felix? I've been thinking about it. The offer you made me that night.
[ --would you go home with a monster like me? ]
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[ As he once explained, he's happy for her to have a home and sense of belonging anywhere and with anyone. She endured so much, he can't let it be for nothing in the end. ]
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It really is ... something she's put a lot of thought into, ever since that night. Seeing Felix covered in blood was frightening enough. Seeing what he did at the trial the next day was much, much worse.
And yet, somehow, she's never really doubted his sincerity. Unlike with Certain Other Psychopaths She Could Name, she actually manages to believe that he cares - that he offered for a reason, however twisted up in his head it might have been. Despite herself (and perhaps despite good sense), she likes Felix. In a way, she thinks she could be really happy with Felix and Chane.
But for reasons that are more to do with how it felt to have others' blood on her hands more than anything else, she knows she could never stay with them forever. ]
I'm really grateful you offered. It means a lot to me. I ... really care about you and Chane. But...
[ ... ]
I'm not like you guys. [ It's not meant as an insult. Even the so-called best of people in this town had murder on their wanted posters.
Now she looks up at him again, her smile soft and sad. ] I don't know ... if I could really stay, in the end.
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Heh. To be perfectly honest, there isn't anybody like Chane and me.
[ In many ways, Xion is dodging a bullet as Claire truly believes that he and Chane are the only two people who really exist in this world that he's somehow in the center of. If he only knew of her own existential crisis, he would probably stay away and avoid hurting her feelings.
After all, even if everyone here is just part of a dream he's having, it doesn't mean they don't matter to him. ]
It's too bad, I always wanted to raise a daughter someday. [ ??? okay?? But don't use Xion for that??? ] Then again, I said you're no ordinary kid from the start, so maybe I shouldn't treat you like one.
... Where will you go?
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The way the word "daughter" makes her feel is something so complicated she immediately shoves it all to the back of her mind, to deal with later. She just doesn't know how to handle another person feeling like that about her. ]
... I'm not sure yet. I'm still thinking about it. [ Though ... she knows what she wants to do. ]
Felix... if when we're all done and we can go home, and we get all our powers back ... do you think I could visit? I might be able to do that. If I could just find my way to you ... I could see you whenever I wanted.
[ Theoretically. She's not sure if the train stopping at each world will be enough information for her to figure out where each place is, but if she gets a glimpse of it, if she can feel it from inside the train before the doors shut again, she might
might just
be able to. ]