foolishwren | 88. [Video]

_{[There was a bit of radio silence on Heather's part for awhile there... but here comes a video post! Because... yeah, uh. Probably a good idea to show everybody she's not DEAD.]

[The girl on the screen looks exhausted. The baggy shadows under her eyes never really seem to go away entirely, but they'd at least gone tame for awhile. Now they're back full force. It seems excessive, maybe, getting so broken-up for days over losing one person, even if that person was her best friend. ... But as she'd found out, he hadn't been the only one she'd lost that day. And she's not totally sure how she feels about it. ... About them both. Just that she's tired. BUT AT LEAST SHE'S NOT PUNCHING ANYTHING, RIGHT?]

[She seems to be leaning on (or... INTO. It's very... voluminous) a sort of... soft white MASS of some sort-- whose identity is revealed when a sharp hooked beak (that is... mostly obscured by fluffy white down) descends into the frame and starts to groom Heather's rat's-nest hair with a quiet twitter. Sunny makes the best pillow.]

[Heather doesn't waste any time before cutting right to the chase, speaking with a bored drawl (that's partially to justify how croaky her voice is-- SCREW EVERYTHING she's a bored teenager she doesn't need to sound nice!).]}

Right, so.

Gonna beat Morty soon and then get outta this town. Nothin' left to do here, really.

So, uh.

We can either head over to Cianwood and see about getting Fly. ... Not that I have anything big enough to fly on, but. Y'know. For the heck of it.

OR we could head over to Mahogany. Which is... well, closer I guess.

So... I dunno. Thoughts? Anyone? Bueller?

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_{[She manages a small laugh, although it doesn't really show on her face.]}

No, I'm not sick.

You just don't seem yourself is all.

... I guess I'm not.

... Myself, that is.

Would you like to talk about it?

_{[He makes himself comfortable, ready to listen should she need an ear. Now that he's got ears after all.]}

_{[There's a longish pause, before she just sort of... looks at the screen. There's something almost defeated about the way her shoulders are sagging.]}

My best friend's gone.

_{[Jack cringes a little, as if she'd socked him in the shoulder. He'd had a terrible feeling.]}

I know there's nothing I can say to bring them back, but I can listen.

_{[Spilling her guts to the Pumpkin King. Heather wouldn't have dreamed of doing it even in the most starry-eyed of moments spent watching Nightmare Before Christmas as a little kid.]

[But...]}

... There was so much I wanted to... you know. Tell him. ... I always just figured I'd get around to it.

_{[It had felt like he wasn't going to go anywhere...]}

_{[Jack is quiet for a while. Those were heavy words. He wasn't going to tell her to STOP PUTTING STUFF OFF IN SUCH AN UNSTABLE PLACE because he knew that she didn't need and didn't want to hear it. The event in itself would just have to serve for that.]}

All we can do is care about people as much as we can while we're here. You're a good friend to me, Heather. I'm very glad to have met you.

_{[Plus, she'd been trying not to! Ever since her father had disappeared for the first time... she'd been trying her best to take advantage of every precious moment. But there was never enough time, was there?]}

... M'glad I met you too, Jack.

_{[Jack is quiet for a little longer before putting on a smile.]}

Tell you what. The next time we run into one another, I'll buy lunch. Dedicated to everyone. I don't think they'd want us to stay sad.

... I think they'd like that.

_{[Translation: I'd like that too.]}

It's settled, then. I'm sure we'll bump into one another.

I'll probably be back in the direction of Goldenrod at some point after we get to Cianwood.

I'll have Fly then, so...

Then perhaps we'll meet sooner than later!

I hope so.

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