Room 324, Tuesday Afternoon

[wwiii]

Okay. Things. There were things happening, and Warren needed to... to do something about them. Frat had been skipped last week because of the holiday, and this week, after losing his entire world, he just hadn't had it in him to coordinate anything resembling fun and games. He'd meant to go to the library to help research over the weekend, and that hadn't happened, and he couldn't really remember the last time he'd eaten, though he was vaguely aware of stumbling off to raid common room fridges at least a couple of times in there.

It was stupid. He hadn't so much as thought about going home in the past two years, and now that it was gone...

He needed to be doing things, but he had no idea where to start. So he just kind of cuddled Thor and stared at the ceiling.

When had moping in his room alone with a bunny become the status quo, anyhow?

[Open post, closed door, IDEK. Someone smack him or something.]

Comments

[dollpocalypse]

And lo, a knock on the door!

From someone who didn't quite respect the courtesy of waiting once he'd knocked, because now he was coming inside anyway. Say hi to Topher, Warren!

"Hi."

Topher was boooooored, you see.

[glacial_queen]

Karla hadn't intended to leave Warren alone with Thor. But after a day spent smashing things in 'Dite's store (and then cleaning up after everyone because she'd be damned if she left Raven to deal with broken glass shards today) and saying goodbye to friends, she'd gone back to her room and spent a few hours making herself cry while looking through photo albums. And had eventually cried herself to sleep without meaning to.

She'd been so heartsore and exhausted, she'd slept clean through until the afternoon. And as much fun as more of the same would have been, Karla dragged herself out of bed and up a flight of stairs. She needed to eat and shower and get dressed and check for any...changes...on the board--but she needed cuddles first.

[wwiii]

"... Hi?"

Warren hadn't really been expecting anyone, except maybe Karla, so the person knocking and inviting himself in had been a little bit of a surprise, even more of a surprise when he sat up and saw who had welcomed himself into his room.

Oh, god. It was here to eat him.

[life_inshadow]

Tara wouldn't smack anyone, but she hadn't been doing so great either. Her world still seemed to be fine, which was giving her .... some weird kind of survivor guilt. And she'd been looking through her spellbooks for so long that her eyes were about to bust into flames.

She needed to talk to somebody, and she had a feeling from the latest notes on the board that Warren might be in an even worse situation.

Tentatively, she tapped on Warren's door. "It's Tara," she called through it. "I can come back if this is a stupid time. Or if you aren't there, but if you aren't there you ... just won't answer. Right?"

[dollpocalypse]

It? Real nice, Warren.

Topher, who had mainly come by because he had nothing to do and wanted to recruit a video game partner (and had come to entirely the wrong place), attempted to devise something to say. And settled on: "Cool bunny."

Well, he was a cool bunny.

[wwiii]

Warren had been wallowing in silence long enough that hearing people outside of his door was generally enough to get him to blink and take notice. After all, Karla hadn't come back yesterday after her shift at Dite's, and now he was kind of waiting, and...

Answering the door. Answering the door totally counted as doing something, so he was putting the bunny down on his bed and going over to investigate.

"Hey," he murmured, when he opened the door. "Missed you."

... Oh, that was not a good look on her face, there.

[wwiii]

"Right," came a muffled kind of answer through Warren's door. Okay... Tara. Tara was cool. She was quiet and understanding and she'd even given him an out if he wasn't up for talking (which he'd blown, but that was fine), and... Really, Warren didn't want to be alone so much, anyhow. "... You can come in, if you want."

No, Warren. She clearly wanted to stand in the hallway.

[glacial_queen]

"Missed you, too," Karla mumbled, dropping her eyes to the vicinity of his waistband somewhere. "Sorry 'bout not coming back last night. I kind of fell asleep downstairs."

While clutching pictures of a vanished friend and sobbing. As you do. It was a totally healthy reaction, okay? Especially after hours of smashing glass at your place of work.

[wwiii]

That was... some conversation starter, right there. Warren blinked down at Thor, who twitched his nose up at the both of them, and then he gave his shoulders a shrug.

"He's pretty cool, yeah. He's the one Bobby picked up when we all went drinking."

Thor was an awesome bunny. Who had a hammer.

[life_inshadow]

There had been many times when Tara opted for the standing in the hallway plan, actually. Many, many times. Though this was not to be one of them.

"Hi," she said, slipping through the door. "How are you doing? It's been --"

She was about to say rough when she spotted a flash of fluff.

"Oh, hi, Bobby's bunny!"

[wwiii]

"It's fine," Warren replied, not... not really liking the way she was mumbling and not looking up at all. "Come in...?"

He was already stepping forward to wrap his arms around her, to lead her into his room, sit her down on his bed beside the bunny. She looked like she needed it about as much as he did, just then.

[dollpocalypse]

"He hasn't eaten your wings," Topher observed, tilting his head at Thor. "Huh."

Topher, not everyone wanted to eat Warren's wings.

[wwiii]

Thor, in true bunny fashion, twitched his nose in reply.

Warren kind of blinked down at him, and then tried to work his way up to a smile that just wasn't making it.

"Thor," he shared. "Bobby... left him here, when he... you know... went back. So he's been keeping me company. He's a good roommate. Quiet, you know?"

[glacial_queen]

That guess was backed up when Karla immediately reached for Thor and cradled him in her arms, burying her face in his fur. She took a few deep, watery breaths, mentally scolding herself about pulling it together. She'd lost Dinah, yes. And Leda had left to vanish with her people.

But Warren had lost his father and his whole damned world. She needed to be the strong one, for him. Right? That's what he needed?

...She was just going to sit here for a few more seconds with Thor. Then she'd see how Warren was doing. Promise.

[wwiii]

Oh, Topher.

"... Yeah. Only weird people chew on people's wings, Topher. Rabbits are not weird people."

So far as Warren was aware.

[wwiii]

Bunny therapy was a powerful force. They were all soft, and Thor had floppy feet and lop-ears, which made him a double-threat. Warren knew when he couldn't compete, and he embraced that knowledge for the greater good.

"... You okay?"

[olympian-herc.livejournal.com]

And lo, did Warren's phone ring.

Elsewhere on the island, there was a former demigod who had just woken up with a bit of a hangover. And was calling his friend.

[dollpocalypse]

"In times of distress," Topher reported, "parrots, cockatoos, macaws and cockatiels will pick at and even consume their own wings."

True story.

[glacial_queen]

Karla nodded, half-turning so she could be curled up against his side while cradling Thor. She nudged him ever-so-slightly in the side. He had a wing and it wasn't being wrapped around her, just saying.

Another few breaths to make sure she could speak without her voice wobbling and she added, "Yeah. Just got some bad news is all. How're you? You seem...better."

Upright. Not in a daze. That kind of thing.

[wwiii]

Oh. Hey, ringing phone. Warren heard you there, and would even check the call display before answering. That was how totally together he had it. Check that out, right?

"Hey, Hercules."

Oh yeah. Warren was a master of conversation, today. If... a bit listless.

[olympian-herc.livejournal.com]

"The phone connected. Good," Hercules said, his voice free of any sign of his normal mirth or jocularity. "Have... have you heard from young Bobby at all?" Hercules sighed a bit, pinching the bridge of his nose.

This would be a happy conversation, obviously.

[wwiii]

Warren's mouth hung open for a minute, there.

No. No, he wasn't going to even think about that one. He was totally human with maybe a few physical differences, but...

"I am not a parakeet," he intoned, pulling the bunny to his chest. "And neither is Thor. So we don't really have that problem, thanks."

[wwiii]

That wing was taking the hint and folding gingerly over her shoulder as she spoke.

"I'm... trying," he admitted. "I want to do something, but I could barely get through class yesterday, so I'm kind of..."

Contemplating the ceiling.

"Do you... want to talk about it?"

[dollpocalypse]

"I didn't say you were," Topher pointed out. "You don't eat your wings, do you? 'Cause that would indicate that maybe you were a cockatoo or something. They've got the whole -- white feathery thing."

This was him trying to help.

[wwiii]

"No," Warren admitted, resting his free hand on Thor's back and inhaling slowly. It was a word he really didn't care to be saying in reply to that question, right there. "Nothing yet. I... guess you've been having trouble getting in touch with people, too?"

You know. For whatever measure of 'getting in touch' included them still being alive and well.