RYSLIG; ic inbox

[isawallflower]

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, CHEERYCHERRY. FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE 019.46.820.17 *** CHEERYCHERRY has joined 019.46.820.17 <CHEERYCHERRY> It's Riley! <CHEERYCHERRY> Please leave a message! <CHEERYCHERRY> Please be someone with their priorities sorted out properly!

main: CheeryCherry
anonymous: panthera, aed
retired: gflynn (anon)

Comments

<KrisKringle>

[getmeoutofthedraft]

Ho ho ho! Your secret Santa gift recipient for this year is Handler on the network.

Her real name does actually seem to be "the Handler". At least, that's what she goes by. Weird, right?

Please spend no more than 20 solars on a gift for the Handler, and ensure she receives it on or before Christmas Day (December 25). If not, Santa Claus will come to your house and glare disappointedly through the windows until you cough up.

Merry Winter-Holiday-Of-Your-Choice!

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ Riley receives this and does a double-take. ]

Wait a second, I never said I wanted to participate in this. I barely even have anything to purchase gifts! And I don't know this person, at all!

<QueenRegnant>

[reignfall]

Did you survive the woods?

⟪ honestly, she's at her best when it's a little unclear if she's asking for her own entertainment or out of sincere concern. ⟫

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ Oh!! Oh, it's...it's the one who asked about flashlights...and peasants..... You know, Riley really hadn't thought about that a lot, but the queen part of her handle makes her wonder... ]

Yes, I did. I am safe and sound back in Bavan.

Forward Dated to around the 14th

[meowbel]

[Should Riley look around Hestia's Place, she will see a box with her name on it. When she looks inside, she'll find a pink sweater covered in glitter!

There will be a note that reads "Thanks for being my friend! Also, I flew to someone's house the other day. I can't say I didn't warn you about not doing stunts."]

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ Well, Riley got so distracted about lecturing about proper stunt practice that she forgot to ask why Mabel needed to know where she lived.
And now she knows!! Well!!!

There's a soft, long moment where she thinks about it, a kid thanking her for being her friend. It's... Riley doesn't quite know what to make of it.

So she just, you know, shoots off a message- ]

Did you handmake that sweater for me? Thanks so much, but you really didn't have to! If you need compensation for the materials, I can do my best to provide them. Or if there's something else you'd prefer?

december 24.

[digiorno]

[Early in the evening, a courier will bring Riley a gift. Or, well, two. Two gift bags — his instincts tell him Riley likes to reuse — labeled 1 and 2, and a note, which reads: I had already figured out 1 when I got my Secret Santa assignment, and I thought using it would be cheating, so I just added on. I hope these are to your liking. Merry Christmas]

[1 contains a pack of 24 hair ribbons. 12 different jewel tones, 12 different pastels. They are unnecessarily good quality for hair ribbons.]

[2 contains a knife, good quality, thematic. Also, a smaller (but not small) bag of whatever christmas snacks he managed to come across in ryslig, including but not limited to: satellite wafers, hot tamales, and some actually very nice chocolate because the candy was upsetting him. Additionally, a wind-up toy (think those chattering teeth) that isn't exactly parasite-shaped but is pretty close.]

1/2

[isawallflower]

[ Getting signed up for the Secret Santa was a pain. In the end, Riley relented, and she realized along the way she's got...one guaranteed gift from someone.

It's a weird feeling, because that's usually how the year goes, she gets something for Cairo and Cairo gives her something in return. Despite this lonely season, that's one little burst of joy. It's been that way since the fourth grade, except... Except for this year. Both still got the other something, but it was hollow. An attempt to pretend they hadn't been estranged (to pretend Riley hadn't been pulling away, until she could figure out how to hide something so horrible, from her best friend—) and that the world was still normal.

So, this is a do-over. But. It's weird. It'll be a courtesy gift, just like the stock gift cards from her parents (or money in her account without a word, without a smile), just like the sparse postcards from her brother. There's nothing real in it. Nothing real in any of this. She'd really rather take herself out of the equation to begin with and just...watch everyone else play at it, at a real holiday.



All this to say, receiving all this is not what Riley is expecting at all. First, that someone she's met here—someone who she keeps inconveniencing, keeps putting in uncomfortable situations—decided separate from the stupid gift exchange to shop for her. Hasn't he other people to, people he- he said he lived there, that implies he's living with people who've been here, maybe even...people he knows, loved ones. Second, that he had the chance to do the bare minimum here, and instead...

For a good five minutes, Riley goes into a full panic. That's probably not the right way to respond to an unexpected gift, but it sure is how she handles this! A little ranting to her cat, a little pacing, but after that? She's out the door immediately, trying not to curse under her breath. ]

Unbelievable, completely— absolutely unbelievable—

<QueenRegnant>

[reignfall]

⟪ It is strange, to not be at the heart of every social gathering at all times, never mind that they feel few and far between in this place as is. She has yet to decide if she likes it or not, but what she knows for certain is that she is unwilling miss out when there is an event on the horizon. The grand opening of the resort is just the excuse to celebrate that she has been looking for to fill the void her utter lack of power has left her with.

Which means that anyone who has encountered Cersei in the last week, particularly someone like Riley, who meets her for training and is therefore inevitably exposed to such bouts of enthusiasm, has heard of this event as well.

And, by the gods, she simply assumes anyone who has heard of it is equally as interested in attending. ⟫

i have been wondering. have you yet had the time to prepare for the upcoming party?

⟪ Party! A whole new word! ⟫

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ Before this past weekend, Riley had never in her life had a single day where she'd been acutely aware of everything she'd been doing. The way she goes through life? Focus. Control. Do your best to control every single aspect you can, so nothing can go wrong. So you won't screw up, or— or so others won't screw things up for you.

One ill-advised painkiller trip later and she's really remembering why that's her philosophy. All because of some stupid, stupid bird feet...

So, when she receives Cersei's message, she assumes it's about...all that. She assumes she's going to have to do a huge show of saving face, or to never show herself outside ever again.

What she actually sees is so much worse. ]

That gathering some businessman's putting together?
Oh, no, I'm not going to that.

<hawkeye>

[coffeepots]

[It takes Clint some time before he feels ready to even reach out to the people he spoke to during last week's horror show. It's not like they could've known he was...well, that the thing they interacted with wasn't himself, but it feels odd just leaving something like that hang in his mind.]

um, hey

this is riley, right?

this is clint barton. you know. the superhero guy.

[It occurs to him after he sends the message that he doesn't know if Riley survived that horrific lodge ordeal or not. He pauses.]

how are you holding up?

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ Riley has been...taking it easy. As best she can. It's...a little hard to type right now, with one of her arms in a sling. But, actually talking to people... No. Nooo, she can't do that right now.

It started feeling a bit better, when the fog rolled in. She hates that. ]

Yes, this is Riley.
I'm alright. Resting mostly.

Are you okay? This is sort of an unexpected message.

<harmonia>

[digiorno]

riley? i have a cat question, when you have a moment.

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

What kind of cat question?
Also please remember I'm really new at the cat owner thing and probably am not the best for advice.

<sodapop>

[creamsouda]

[So this is awkward. Everything that happened... happened. and while Souda's despairing flames may have purged that nasty Thing from Sonia, someone from his class, it didn't work out that way with Riley.

Sonia remembered, though, and so it stands to reason Riley might remember, too.

More than anything, he hopes everything else about that trip was like... way more on Riley's mind than anything he did or said.]

yo

you good?


[is... th ebest he can come up with, though.]

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ hhhahahahahahahaha how the fuck is she supposed to answer this ]


Hello!!
I'm
I'm recovering fine!!!

[ nailed it??? ]

<QueenRegnant>

[reignfall]

if today finds you well and none too busy, i received a gift for the past winter holiday that i would like to share with you. a kind friend offered me admittance to his cat café. there will be cake!

i am unsure whether or not one or both of us are required to bring our cats or cat-like predators, however.

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ Though it takes her about forty minutes to respond: ]

I just finished moving into the apartments, so you have good timing! That's very sweet but you don't have to, really. Only if there's no one else you'd rather bring!

I don't think a cat café requires a cat to visit, but I've never been to one before. They don't have any where I live back home.

[ A pause and then another message— ]

but it's not going to be like a party or anything right, just a café?

<ranger> 3/02

[feudalladyshandmaid]

[So. It's been a couple weeks. And judging from the utter mess of problems that plagued Bavan, and the monster population specifically, it didn't shock Cass at all when Riley requested some time off. It was granted almost immediately, because wow. She didn't... look well.

Of course, as time goes on, concern grows. That's the reason why this message pops into Riley's inbox.]

Hey, it's Cassandra.
I'm checking in on you. Just reply to this whenever you can, alright?

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ There's no response for a good long while. What comes then: ]

Do you need me back in the office?
I'm sorry. I lost track of time.
If you'd prefer to fire me, I understand.

<QueenRegnant>

[reignfall]

I missed you at supper today. It seems to be the sort of pleasant habit that could go on beyond this... delusion we shared.

Besides, I still have a nameday gift to give you.

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ ...What?

It takes Riley a little bit to respond. This message is a shock, to say the least. ]

Are you inviting me over again? But, that wasn't real.
You're under no obligation, you know?

[ACTION] Post-event, backdated to the 23rd

[icy_veins]

[Despite his early return to Ryslig, Lucius' own was clue enough that those who were trapped within that other realm are no longer. It takes him time, of course, to get his bearings—but once he does, it's unfinished business that draws him to the 38-8 apartments. As promised, wrapped in neat brown paper and twine, is Riley's fixed jacket—atop it, a bouquet of white and yellow daffodils.

In his chest, is a heart thundering so loud he can hardly hear the way his opaline knuckles rap against the door when he knocks.

Eridanus doesn't know what to say, he hasn't thought of the words. How is he supposed to feel about the fabricated memories that make his head feel as if it's stuffed with cotton? He closes his eyes, and he can see every one of Riley's birthdays within that world. Her smiles, her tears, her triumphs and her failures. His heart tugs at the reminder that it will be the closest he'll ever come to seeing his own daughter grow up.

The door opens, and he forces down the thoughts, the memories, and instead pulls a smile across his features.]

Happy Birthday, Riley.

cw: self-harm mentions, mild suicidal ideation, parental neglect

[isawallflower]

[ Today, Riley found herself back in her Ryslig apartment, blood on her front and feathers rapidly growing in. It didn't hurt, not that much, though maybe she was just in shock.

She's since seen Steve—Steve, not Steffan, her friend, not her brother— and since changed clothes, left her blood-stained shirt in the sink to deal with later. She hasn't slept since the night before, as Monday was spent murdering a man, a man who she dimly realizes won't be too happy with her, should he be back here like she is. Her apartment's as it was when she was snatched into that delusion, feathers scattered everywhere from when she painfully plucked them, bits of her claws left haphazardly on the floor out of a desperate desire to remove anything monstrous about her.

When she opens the door, she doesn't know what to expect. Maybe it'll be Aunamee, here to return the favor. That thought alone should make her more fearful, more hesitant, shouldn't it? She doesn't want to die. But she also can't muster up the energy to care. At the moment, she's completely hollowed out.

Which is why Eridanus—though she's never met him before in this appearance she knows it's him, she's somewhat sure—with a present and flowers has her at a complete loss for words. She couldn't have fallen asleep, because if this was a dream he'd be human. Unless she's genuinely and completely lost it, it means he's here. Here, when she's swimming in contradictory memories of a man with red hair and a deceptively friendly expression walking out the door without so much as a good morning, and a true but fabricated kind smile from the person before her, those very words echoing in her mind.

Riley's parents had never been invested in her, and at the same time, she knows a lifetime with a loving father. The dichotomy is enough to draw tears to her eyes as she looks up at Eridanus. ]

You— y-you..

[ She's overcome. She swoops forward and practically crashes into him, unable to keep herself from sobbing. ]

<Harrington>

[hairday]

hey riles, do you have any more of the good stuff? ;) you know, like from a couple months ago

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ Riley takes a moment to kind of short-circuit, because he's still...calling her that, and she is going to have to address it if it continues.

But then she puts both the smiley face and "the good stuff" together and— ]

Yes, I do.
Are you okay???

action, end march. cw depression, depersonalization/dissoc., unreality, implied suicidal ideation

[digiorno]

[This is how it went: one day, Haruno decided that he didn't want to be himself anymore. He sewed up a chrysalis, sealed himself inside, and came out something different. A new, brighter, better person, entirely separate. That's how Giorno came to be.]

[Even with long teeth and sharp claws and eyes that don't look like they belong to a human being, Giorno didn't change. He stayed himself, only himself, content and certain in his self. Until one day, the world shifted slightly sideways and made the course of nature flow in reverse. Giorno was forced to recede into a shell long since shed, compacted tight, and ejected Haruno all over again.]

[Haruno lived a whole happy life. Which was never possible for the real Haruno. It could never have happened. It's cruel, Giorno recognizes dully, to present such a pathetic barely-a-person with the illusion of happiness. Inside him, Haruno stirs now, restless with sorrow and regret and what-ifs. It's annoying. Nagging. There's no point even thinking about it. That whole thing was a lie. If Haruno had carried on, he would have died, or worse. They both knew there wasn't any future for him. They both did the right thing.]

[None of this could possibly come out of his mouth coherently, so he doesn't try. Like always, he runs, isolates, avoids. There are some people he avoids more than others, people he had closest contact with in that other Bavan, but really, he doesn't want to speak to anyone. He doesn't want to look at anyone. Messages go unanswered. He finds new places to spend his time, to enjoy the warming sun as spring tries its best to distract him.]

[He doesn't hear his name being called from above as he lets his roots drag idly through the water of a small pond in the center of a park he's never visited before. The likelihood of being found in this improbable location is so low, he's simply refusing to acknowledge it.]

[isawallflower]

[ Riley flies.

That week in the alternate Bavan was...a mixed bag. A mixed everything. Everything came crashing down, halfway through, but she keeps holding those first few days close. Keeps running over the alternate memories, trying to find ways to keep the good parts real and alive.

Before, when she couldn't handle interacting with people, after her "family" from February ripped open all her scars, she flew. Now, when she needs time to sort things out, that's what she takes to as well. ...This is something she missed, going over those alternate memories. That's...something she has to sort out, too.

She doesn't intend to talk to anyone while out. This is time for her, not anyone else. However, when her sharp eyes pick out a particular shade of green, a particular curl of leafy hair...she almost freezes in the air.

Things with Giorno are...weird. For good reasons, she kind of fears talking with him, worrying she blew that entirely. But...then there was Haruno.

Before she knows what she's doing, she swoops lower, her vibrant feathers reflected in the pond. ] Giorno? Giorno, is that you?

<QueenRegnant>

[reignfall]

rafe is no longer with us.

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

What?
You mean he's just gone?
You're sure he's not just out somewhere, on some roof or something?

Action, first week of April

[knifemonopoly]

[He knows which building Riley lives in, thanks to Steve. He also knows she's got bird features, which means she'll likely gravitate to the upper levels, right? So, he's able to narrow down which window is hers, and he feels like he's in a joke version of one of those old-timey movies, except he doesn't want to bite a girl in a nightgown, he just really wants to stop being a bat.

He's not being a creep, he swears. He just needs, like....he needs a hand, and while he could fly to Noa's place he's not sure where it is, and Ryou's dealing with enough right now, and Lust's got enough going on between the casino and being a doctor, and when he ran through the list of people he could go to and cross-referenced it with the people whose addresses he knew....she came up.

And she already knows he's a vampire, so maybe she won't freak out too bad?

She'll hear a scratching at her living room window. Scratch scratch. And if that doesn't get her attention, there's a hissed--]

Psst! Riley! Riley!

[There's nothing immediately visible outside, though. He's hanging by his feet (new, weird) from the ledge above her window, tucked into a patch of darkness. He's pretty small. It's not hard. He, uh...he might be steeling himself, for the amount of pride he's going to have to swallow here.]

[isawallflower]

[ For a few moments, there's no response. Then, all of a sudden, there's a little orange furry face staring out into the darkness.

You know how Riley has a cat? He's here to welcome Yugi. He lets out a mew, pawing at the window and searching for the source of the scratching. ]

<Harrington>

[hairday]

can i get your opinion on something?

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

On what?
Is everything okay?

<saturnschild>

[marcato]

[The message comes late at night. ]

Hello, Riley.

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ She's tired and checking her laptop before bed.

This immediately wakes her up. She's been careless. ]

I'm sorry, okay? Just leave me alone.

4/16

[digiorno]

[A conundrum: what if you want to pass something along to someone, but don't want to look at literally even one person? Solution:]

riley. do you remember where my tree is?

[isawallflower]

[ Oh, this is. Convenient, actually. ]

The one you were in when


Yes, if it's that one, yes I remember!
Why?

<Player1>

[knifemonopoly]

[After spotting this thread, you know the one.]

Some dangerous-sounding people were talking about you on the network.
Are you okay?

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ hahahaha guess who is NOT answering this right away. give her about...ten minutes. ]

Yes
I'm ok
don't worry about it

<teslacoils>

[terribibble]

[Fiddleford McGucket, not a few weeks before this: I have to stop trying so hard to help people because it never seems to go right.

Fiddleford McGucket, after seeing the shitshow brewing on Aunamee's most recent post: HELP TIME]

Riley honey is there anything I can do?

[After the way she reacted to her perfectly-justified torching of his parasite-controlled body... he figures it's the same sort of thing. A murder that was probably completely justified (it was Aunamee, for God's sake), which she's having trouble processing.]

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ Oh, no. No, this is...probably the worst thing that could happen. Riley feels numb in how frightened she is.

After several long minutes:]

You don't have to do anything.
I'm not your responsibility.

<fenrir>

[dead_eyed_wolf]

[Upon seeing this thread play out for a bit on the network, Mukuro decides it's time to step in.]

are you at home?
this is mukuro.

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

[ It's a regular parade, isn't it. ]

i'm here yeah

<4N631>

[girlcorrupted]

[ In regards to this thread ]

Riley this is Angel. Are you okay?

<CheeryCherry>

[isawallflower]

at this point i really don't know how to answer that

post-aunameepocalypse

[digiorno]

[apropos of nothing:]

what is your favorite sweet flavor and color that isn't orange?

[isawallflower]

[ what... ]

I like cinnamon and red. Why?

around the 10th ish

[coffeepots]

[It's raining yet again in Bavan, which means ample opportunity for unchecked leaks to make themselves known in the 38-8 Apartments. It's not really like the place is falling apart, per se. Thanks to Lust's constant flow of income from the casino, Clint doesn't have to worry about being stingy when it comes to apartment upkeep. But, given that Clint's only other superintendent experience has been dubious and the fact that he really, really hates paperwork, things tend to slip through the cracks.

In this case, it's rainwater dripping down onto the eighth floor. It's a little too late in the evening to call up any nearby businesses to come check out the leaks, so Clint resigns himself to make his way up to the roof to do something about it, himself. Umbrella in hand, he marches up the stairs to...to do what, exactly? He's not a roofer, he doesn't know what he's gonna do besides nod to himself, confirm that it's a leak, and head back downstairs to put a bucket--

--is that a nest?

Clint blinks, tilting his head to the side as he squints towards the heaping pile of...stuff accumulated off to the side. Even from this distance, it's hard to miss the telltale bright red feathers.]

Huh.

[His nose twitches as he adjusts his umbrella slightly. In a slightly amused tone--]

You know, the entire point of an apartment is to make sure there's a roof above your head to protect you against the rain. [A pause.] So, uh, mind if I ask what this is all about?

[isawallflower]

[ The last week or so has been very troubling for Riley. Everything with Aunamee, meeting Rachel, the multiple conversations she's had trying to push people from what she's done— the whole thing's left her just a little stressed. It first started with cleaning her apartment, as it's covered in her molted feathers. Out of habit, she'd gone up to the roof, as the way she takes her garbage out is to fly off it to the ground, since the day the elevator was slow and going down seven flights of stairs sounded like a pain. When she realized her molted wings haven't grown back enough feathers to fly, she almost retreated in defeat, but—

But being out in the open air, with a whole bag of stray feathers...

One thing lead to another and soon Riley had blankets, sweatbands, whatever stray logs might've been left up from May's barbeque, she was even looking around for a tarp when Clint had arrived—to build what can only be described as a nest. It's not like she'd been really thinking while doing it. It was...controlled. It was methodic.

It was relaxing.

Now that she's been caught, however, her neck stretches out in surprise as her head feathers crest. ]

Mr. Barton— I mean- Mr. Clint, uhm- [ She turns around, though her neck turns more than her body, flexible thing that it is. ] I just got- it- oh shoot, this is your property, I'm sorry!