96. [Accidental Video/Action for Ecruteak] BACKDATED TO THE 22ND

[foolishwren]

<sub>[Chaotic and occasionally-accidental videos have become a relatively frequent occurrence during the outbreak, and this video is really no different in that aspect.]

[The feed comes to life in a chaotic jumble that makes it clear that the 'Gear was bumped or jostled into turning on-- no amateur-but-deliberate filming of Pokemon attacking action figures this time around. It does, however, come to a brief halt as the carrier pauses.]



[Sunny the Togekiss peers sorrowfully down from the outdoor-rafters she's perched on, apparently refusing to come down.]</sub>

-ny!

SUNNY!

Get the HELL down-- oh my god, you know what?

Forget it.

FORGET IT.

Forget it.

Fucking BIRD.

_{[The screen whirls and and all image coherency disappears in a swirl of bouncing sky and trees. The WHACK WHACK WHACK of the mic hitting the other contents of Heather's bag as it swings at her side destroy most of the audibility too, but snippets of voices come through-- Heather's and someone else's. People who are familiar with her and the people she travels with will recognize it as her father Harry Mason.]}


Heath--r please be reason-- just stop for a moment and think ab-- you don't need to d-- let it g--

No. NO. She--

I don't CARE if she's not g-- to-- I'm going--- do what I should have done in t-- --ace!

--L MASON--

_{[The thumping stops as Heather apparently stops and spins on her heel. As she does so, the camera's view once again settles, offering an off-kilter perspective view of her from roughly waist-level. She's been staying away from the network as much as possible as the effects of the strange outbreak started to hit her hard, and now it's fairly evident why: dark, scorched-looking splotches have spread across every inch of skin like burns-- and where they crack, bright, veinlike lines like something molten spread. Her hair is smoky and black.]}

I am NOT losing you again, Dad!

_{[And then, after that raspy, croaky scream, she whirls again and keeps going. The feed times out at some point, after a lot of jumbled sounds as other voices join the apparent debate.]}



[OOC: Cooooonteeeeeext. Replies over the 'Gear will likely be ICly delayed and/or limited.]

Comments

Action

[haveyouseenalittlegirl]

[Not getting rid of him that easy. Following after her.]

Cheryl Mason, I told you to stop.

You need to calm down.

Action

[foolishwren]

<sub>[How many times have conversations like this played out between them? Back home, it was usually over some stupid thing Heather did to get herself in trouble at school, or over some thing Harry had decided to put his foot down about, and she was usually stomping out the door or towards her room.]

[Needless to say... this time was a little different.]

[Still, she whirls around, as usual, rage etched across every inch of her face.]</sub>

NO, I don't.

I've BEEN calm.

I've BEEN calm and I SHOULDN'T have. I'm gonna end this stupid, STUPID thing.

Action

[haveyouseenalittlegirl]

[Just a little. Harry stops walking as she turns to glare at him. His own face is less emotional then hers, pushing back anything he might be feeling at the moment so he can try to get through to her.]

I'm right here. You're not going to lose me. You don't need to do this Cheryl.

Action

[foolishwren]

Yes, I DO.

I've needed to do this for three years.

I should have done it the FIRST time she showed her face here.

[video]

[show_my_cannons]

Kid, what are you doing?

[video]

[foolishwren]

_{[The reply does not come for quite awhile, and when it does, the wind is roaring in the speakers. But not enough to block out Heather's voice.]}

Stay out of this, Ironhide.

_{[It's a flat tone. Flatter than she's ever spoken with him before.]}

[video]

[show_my_cannons]

Too bad, kid. Already sticking my faceplates in it.

What happened.

video

[her_mouse_jesty]

[Throughout this plot, Minnie has pretty much refused to show herself, due to her new hair color, white. but this calls her attention and is far more important than her looks.]

Heather!

video

[foolishwren]

<sub>[Unfortunately, Heather won't be returning the favor-- at least not directly. The 'Gear is held in her hand, which is also holding onto the back of the bird she's on. It's not one of hers-- not Sunny. Must belong to someone else.]

[Either way, there's only a partial worm's-eye view of the girl's face. But what little of it can be seen is scorched and flickering-- like the wind is stoking up a bunch of embers under her skin.]</sub>

Stay out of this, Minnie.

It's my business.

video

[her_mouse_jesty]

And you're my business! Heather, you're worrying all of your friends, you're going to get a flood of scared calls, so you'd better slow down and try to think!

[video]

[bakaitoukid]

[... Kaito sure isn't taking this video sitting down. He's out and about looking for her as soon as he gets it, and in the meantime, is posting his own response to the network]

Heather! O-oi oi, what're you doing?

[video]

[foolishwren]

<sub>[The voice that answers him is one she has never spoken in to him. Not once.]

[It's utterly cold.]</sub>

None of your business, Kaito.

[video]

[bakaitoukid]

[thaaat makes him freeze in his tracks completely, and leaves him staring at the screen, eyes wide for a few moments... before his surprise dissolves]

... s'too late for that.

What's going on?

[video]

[darkenedgales]

[Okay, that? That certainly doesn't concern something as trivial as blowing up hot dog stands. No, it appears to be really serious this time, so Crow (who's still blissfully unaware of what it means for him) will act accordingly.]

Heather, what's that all 'bout?

[audio]

[foolishwren]

<sub>[Oh hey Crow! Note that the video isn't on. Because Heather knows what she's doing is wrong. She's planning to apologize later.]

[But this can't wait.]

[It's already waited three years.]</sub>

Nothing you need to be concerned with.

[video]

[darkenedgales]

[Apology might not be enough.

In Crow's opinion, no, it can't wait, because judging by Harry's reaction, Heather must be out to do something stupid.]

Well, too late. Care to enlighten me, or do I need to go there personally?

[video]

[exeggutorhead]

Heather? What the hell happened?

[Because something must have, and whatever it was couldn't be good.]

[video]

[foolishwren]

_{[The wind is whistling through the speakers when she replies. She's in the air, and flying fast. Not much can be seen aside from tawny plumage.]}

Nothing you need to worry about.

It'll be over soon.

[video]

[exeggutorhead]

[He frowns.]

It looked like something I should worry about.

[video]

[vulpesvivus]

[For the first time since this mess started, Otacon switches to video rather than text; every time he gets much closer to the screen it starts getting faintly staticy. Which is just as well, as that makes it harder to tell his eyes seem to have turned red in addition to streaks of gray no amount of hair dye could cover up.]

...Talk to me. What's going on?

[video] sob I'm sorry she is pushing everyone away ;-;

[foolishwren]

_{[Any other time, she might have had the presence of mind to appreciate that. But now... There was a cliff edge and she had gone sailing off of it. It's a good thing the static from her 'Gear's speakers is being blown out by the wind because it would have rattled her brains even more.]}

Not in the mood to talk, Otacon.

[video] ;; heather plz

[vulpesvivus]

...

[He paused, honestly considering for a moment or two if this was something she needed to settle without his intervention. God knew he could understand things like that, at this point in his life. But concern won out after a conflict that didn't last long at all.]

I can tell. But don't you think that's reason enough to talk anyway?

Just tell me what's going on. That's all I'm asking.

[audio]

[tapestodiane]

<sub>[He's heard Heather angry more than a few times before. But there's something very, very different about it this time, the intense and urgent tone of it that is easy to read as something being very, very wrong somehow.]

[Naturally, he worries.]

[She's rash. And while he doesn't know the context here, he knows enough about her to know that someone should probably step in, even if just to talk her down. (It's interesting to think about, the way he's apparently one of those people now.)]</sub>

Heather? Heather, what's going on?

[audio]

[foolishwren]

<sub>[It's Cooper.]

[Cooper, the one person besides her father who actually knows the whole truth about Claudia.]

[Except even he probably won't agree with what she's doing. She takes a moment to make herself not care before answering.]</sub>

Claudia's back.

[audio]

[tapestodiane]

_{[That clears a lot of things up very quickly as he mentally backtracks everything significant even as he answers. It's taken on a slightly warning note, his voice, but hidden beneath a professional neutrality.]}

What are you going to do?