[ prp ] when skies are grey (America & Shun)

[lizbot]

Not only is it the prettiest camper at the campground, but pretty much the only one, sitting on one end by itself, small against the natural scenery and very, very alone. Mr. Bitterberry flies over to greet Shun first, and then the little door is opening, and America steps out. She's maybe a bit more tired looking than usual. Maybe a bit older around the eyes and younger at the shoulders. There's a new weight for them all the bear, after all.

"Hey, it's just about ready."

It was a particularly fragrant pot of red beans and rice. Simple comfort fare, perfect for a chilly day.

blade kuroda

 

[Blade Kuroda]

The presence of Mr. Bitterberry only let him know that he was in the right place. He nodded once to the bird, then made his way to the camper that America emerged from. She seemed worn. Adjusting to the new world must be taking its toll on the girl.

"America," he greeted as he stepped on inside. Lunch smelled pretty good, from what he was able to pick up on.

Lizbot

 

[lizbot]

The camper is small and cozy, but it's not nearly as tiny as it looks from the outside. It's also decorated with the sort of enthusiasm and cheer that can be expected of someone like America, though not necessarily the subdued girl currently adding a little pinch of seasoning to the pot before giving it a final stir. There's a booth with a table at one end, and it's already set for two, a pot of tea and carafe of milk waiting for him to help himself.

"Take a seat, hun. Jer mentioned folks know he's magic here," she begins without bothering over small talk. "Is it the same for you?"

blade kuroda

 

[Blade Kuroda]

Shun nodded and made his way over to the table to seat himself. He went ahead to pour himself a cup of tea while America finished cooking.

"Not the general populace it seems. Seems the other me did a fairly good job of keeping things under wraps. Either that or people are not letting on that they know, which is possible."

He hoped it wasn't the latter. Given what he was able to gather on the matter, magic wasn't exactly highly welcomed in this world. People feared it.

Lizbot

 

[lizbot]

She let out the breath that apparently she'd been holding. Bringing the pot over to the table, America smiled a bit, warning, "Hope you don't mind it a bit spicy. Tell me when."

Serving both herself and Shun, she waited until they were both settled before saying, "She never called herself Ascension. It's hard to read that and think of her as that person. But maybe I just want her less gone, however I can manage."

blade kuroda

 

[Blade Kuroda]

"Spicy is fine with me," Shun said, watching her serve. Once they both had their food and were settled in, he went on and answered her.

"During the ball... I was told that her name is Ascension because she would Ascend if we allowed her to. Ascension was who we saw at the rift... when she was going mad."

He took a sip of tea, then tried a bite of food.

Lizbot

 

[lizbot]

It was indeed spicy, but nothing super punishing. Enough to warm the body and clear the sinuses.

She thinks about the answer, and it starts to click together. "I guess that makes sense, then. That she wouldn't survive what we did." Sighing, she goes on, "I wonder if this Sunny has another name, too."

She takes a bite, but can't seem to take another.

"How did she die?"

blade kuroda

 

[Blade Kuroda]

After that initial taste, Shun went ahead and took a few more bites. This was pretty good.

"Throat and wrists were slit. Seems ritualistic over all. Circumstances do imply that somehow we caused this, but I am not completely certain of it."

Lizbot

 

[lizbot]

"Three," she comments softly, "...always in threes." Finally taking another bite, America adds, "I'm pretty sure I took over Heliodora's place. Kinda...as the knot, though, 'stead of stars. Is there an investigation, then? For Ascension-Sunny?"

blade kuroda

 

[Blade Kuroda]

Shun paused at that, holding his spoon up, as he just stared at America.

"You... you are one of the pillars now?" he asked. He wasn't sure how to feel about this. He knew people were going to need to replace the original three, but this was just a large reminder of that fact.

It made it harder to shake the feeling of failure.

"I apologize."

He let out a sigh, then nodded, "Her murder is my case. A nice little 'surprise' that had been left on my desk upon returning to work."

Lizbot

 

[lizbot]

"Nothing to apologize about," America murmured, "everyone there was a volunteer, right? You n'Jer..." she sighed, "you guys have had a lot of responsibility 'bout dealing with things. You're cops and magic, and it's like you guys pulled a double duty for...well, forever, maybe. Still do. I don't mind taking my piece of responsibility for all this, so don't feel sorry when you already got so much to watch over."

She goes quiet for a bit, eating her lunch and turning that over.

"Do you...do you know anything about her...here? Like her life? If there's a murder case, she was a person here, right?"

blade kuroda

 

[Blade Kuroda]

There was also the bit that he had a role in breaking things that lead to that, by taking the life of the one America had replaced. He said nothing of this, however.

"Not much. There are no tales of the witch on the beach, so Ascension was... different. Liam, her father, unfortunately does not seem to know much either, as he is like us... from the old world. I do not have nearly as many details as I would like on this matter."

Lizbot

 

[lizbot]

Humming thoughtfully, America wondered outloud, "Maybe we can find something at the library. Records or newspapers or some such. There's gotta be something if the investigation isn't all Jane Doe, right?"

blade kuroda

 

[Blade Kuroda]

"Most likely," Shun nodded, "There is bound to be something more about who she was... or at least someone who knew her. It is just a matter of figuring out who."

Which was tricky when a chunk of them had no knowledge of the new world.

Lizbot

 

[lizbot]

"Unless," she sighed, "it's like those three in '69 you mentioned. There but not really." There's a pause, and then, not looking up from her drink, she went on, "I'm kinda worried about that. If maybe the principal thing like...what if me existing, my past or realness or whatever, is part of the cost. What if there's someone like Algernon over there, who sees me and is like she wasn't here last week, everybody says they know her, but she didn't exist on Tuesday.. S'why I haven't tried calling my family or anything. Have you talked to yours?"

She slouched down uncharacteristically in her seat, eyes finally venturing to take in his expression.

blade kuroda