[Open] This Used To Be A Small Prosperous Fishing Village...

[moonlesstides]

Who: Grace and YOU (but also Helena and Valdis)
What: Coming aboard, trying in vain to practice reading, exploring the ship
When: June
Where: Places
Warnings: Grace is violent, she thinks of JACK THE RIPPER, YES, THAT ONE, as a close personal friend, and she may well discuss the Manor's violent and torturous death games without thinking much of it. Other warnings will be tagged as needed.



Moving Out To The Country [Closed to Valdis and possibly Max Maximum?; Cabin 105]

Congratulations Valdis, you have a roommate now and it seems she tends to turn in early. Grace is in her assigned cabin by roughly seven in the evening with a large number of children's picture books, many of them the big board book types with brightly colored illustrations and huge letters. She sets up on the bed, having no conception that she's got a roommate already, and sets about trying to tackle the power of words.

Grace reads with a look of absolute concentration, one claw-like nail tracing the pages. Her lips do not move - why would they, she's never been able to speak aloud, and still, technically, can't - but in all ways but the literal she's sounding the words out.

What she wouldn't give for a dictionary, even if the letters in it are so very small.

Deadliest Catch [Buffet]

The crab legs have been taken hostage. Grace hadn't realized just how hungry she was after her tempestuous introduction to the ship, including the failed hunt against that damned chatterer, and unfortunately for lovers of crab everywhere Grace eats A. seafood and B. nothing else. Her table setup is...odd. Technically everything is on a plate, but Grace has stacked the plates of crab legs on other plates of crab legs, making a diffuse Jenga tower of crustacean carnage, which she works her way through by cracking the legs open with her bare hands and delicately nibbling at the meat within.

She doesn't even have dip. She doesn't even have dip.

Edge of the Dance Floor [Various]

Grace hasn't had a lot of contact with people her own age. The list of meaningful friendships she's had with peers includes Helena aaaaaaaand that's it, end of the list. Are you a teen or young adult? You might catch a shy face across the room or from around a corner, staring with unguarded curiosity only to realize you've spotted her and try to duck away. Grace isn't going far; the fascination is difficult to ignore.

For those of you who like a sea view, you may find Grace in the sea, where she has come to the mistaken belief that hot dogs are a kind of fish. She surfaces every now and again with a fistful of uncooked hot dogs and just. Chows down on them, in front of God and everybody. Before these swims Grace lowers the lifeboat but doesn't cast it off, mainly so she can climb up the rope instead of trying to Spider-Man her way up the side of the ship. She's done that once already. Once was enough.

Laundry Day [Laundry Room]

Grace currently owns one outfit. She's not sure what she needs to do to get more clothing, though every now and again you might find her staring at the Tommy Bahama, wondering who to buy the clothes from. But that means she's getting sweaty, and salty from swimming, and generally dirty, and her clothes are too.

So when you walk into the laundry room you may well find Grace in the fucking washing machine, spinning gently while her harpoon clink-clink-clanks against the little viewport bubble.

Pursuit Music - Grace & Helena & YOU

An odd scene is taking place at the library. Here we have Helena, currently engaged in enjoying books; so far, so normal. Floating behind her is the tall, blue figure of Grace, lazily dragging her harpoon in one hand and firmly holding a standard ruler in the other. Grace floats there, silently, somtimes leaning forward or craning her neck to stare uselessly at the braille writing of whatever Helena is reading.

It's when Helena gets to the end of a given poetry collection or novel that the strange ritual occurs. Grace floats behind her, absolutely in Helena's personal space, and waits. When Helena has put her book away and selected a new one, Grace very slowly boops her on the top of the head with a ruler, makes a humming noise of satisfaction, and then picks her up by the back of her shirt with the harpoon. This accomplished, Grace then carries the blind lass to a new chair (and it's a new chair, every single time), sets her in it, and takes her position back behind Helena again.

Grace is gonna do this as long as Helena's in the library. She will spend hours here doing nothing else. Likewise, Helena seems committed to sighing about it every time, exhibiting her rare public expression of mild annoyance.

((OOC note: it might take Grace a bit to reply to someone who doesn't address her directly; I'll tag in as seems like, appropriate))

Comments

pursuit. (closed)

[decrypter]

It's at one of these carrying moments that Helena speaks up, having borne with the ritual so far in the name of entertaining Grace.

"...Why is the ruler necessary?"

Why do they need to imitate what has happened before so much? Hasn't this grown tiring yet?

[moonlesstides]

Grace nestles Helena in the new chair, and does her best to make sure it's comfortable before taking up her position behind it. The chair must be guarded. This is essential.

It's a while, before Helena gets an answer. ~The ruler can't hurt you. I do not want to hurt you. I stopped wanting to a long time ago.~

[decrypter]

"But why use it? Why are we doing all of this, here of all places?"

At least in the library she has things to read. And currently, she's trying to find a particular poem to give to some of her more advanced students in Braille class, to ask them to read it to her so that she can check how their touch recognition is coming.

"Is this really fun for you?"

[moonlesstides]

~Fun...~

That frustrated sound, Grace's huffy growl like someone insulted her dress at the village dance.

The ruler comes down with exaggerated slowness, barely even touching Helena. Grace's breathing evens back out; that felt correct.

Moving Out

[redlightgreenlight]

It seems that Grace has missed the very evident signs that this room has another inhabitant. The currently empty tank as Ody is running amuck around the ship. The two stuffed animals on the perfectly made bed. The three framed feathers hanging on the wall, and of course the glowing sword resting in the corner. If she opened one of the closets, one is normal, but the other is walk in, with elegant dresses, various shoes and other clothing all meticulously put away. The other bed is folded into the couch, as it should be since Valdis was not expecting a new roommate quite so soon. Nor does she want one.

"No." Is the first word out of her mouth when she opens the door.

[moonlesstides]

The door opening startles Grace (and oh, doesn't she feel odd? Not quite alive, not quite dead; there's a soul there, yes, but if there wasn't she'd feel more like a lake than a person), causing her to drop her copy of The Very Hungry Catepillar. No? No? This is her room. She was assigned it. Grace reaches behind her back with her newly freed hand and plucks her ship phone from the fishing basket (covered in seaweed and algae) that she wears strapped to her back.

She holds it out at Valdis like a talisman.

[redlightgreenlight]

Valdis will focus on the strangeness of the woman later, after a dynamic has been established.

"No, that is my bed." She clarifies. She just got the actual bed and is certainly not giving it up now. "Yours can be made up, but I would appreciate it if you could keep your things off mine."

Palamedes had kept a very defined line. No. She's not ready to think about him. it hurts too much to have someone she trusted with her secrets gone into the Nothing. He had also always understood when she kicked him out, not that he would have wanted to stay for that anyway. But this woman also feels...vast, and violent. Max should probably stay away for a time until she can determine if this is safe for him.

'Woman' may be a strong word Valdis -

[moonlesstides]

There is a frustrated noise, huffy and proud and childish, but Grace sweeps the books off of the bed and gets up from it. She flicks them one by one across the room with the tip of her harpoon, glaring at Valdis like Valdis took a cookie away from her.

Wait.

WAIT RIGHT SHE CAN TALK NOW -

Grace's voice bubbles up in Valdis's consciousness without quite crossing her ears. ~You live here as well? We are not given our own rooms?~

Laundry!

[knotawolf]

Yufei has no idea what this room full of metal cubes is, but they're making a terrible sound so he goes to investigate. The one making the tinking noise is the most annoying and he slams his palm down on the top of it a few times as if that'll make it shut up.

[moonlesstides]

Well that's unpleasant! Grace winces and tries to cover her ears - water carries the sharp sounds, and sharpens them further - only to find out quick that this is of no help whatsoever. Well, fine. She can get out of this extremely strange bathtub! Grace pushes against the door -

- And learns that washing machines lock to keep a water-tight seal. Oh no. No no no no absolutely not! She starts slamming her palms against the inside of the door, hoping to break out by brute force.

She won't. Grace isn't as strong as one might think.

[knotawolf]

Oh it makes noise back! Delighted he hits it again and listens as it thunks in return. He scrambles up on top of it so he can look behind it, around the side, and eventually down the front.

Have an upside down man with quite a lot of hair peering into the clear circular opening. "Hello."

Just two cryptids who don't know what a washing machine is

[moonlesstides]

Glory be, the gentleman has noticed her! Grace tries to wave, and while the gesture is successful the spinning of the washing machine, well, that does make things a bit different. She can hear his 'hello' (Grace has never questioned her ability to hear underwater, and she really should), but how is she going to -

Yes! She has that option now! Her voice bubbles up in the man's mind, as if from a great depth: ~This strange bathtub seems to have locked me inside. Can you make it stop?~

Laundry Day!

[bubblegumheart]

Who has two thumbs and has been shopping exclusively at the Tommy Bahama virtually the entire time she's been here? That's right, it's Chrissy. And Chrissy is currently ducking into the laundry room with one of the macrame bags she made what feels like a lifetime ago when Steve mentioned wanting to learn.

It's not the bag that matters so much in this scenario as the small load of shirts and things she's tucked into it. The room isn't crowded today. In fact, aside from the single odd-sounding machine, the place looks to be deserted.

Which is why she freezes almost comically when she glances up and spots someone inside the running machine. Common sense dictates that she should try to do something to help, but for the moment she's just having a little trouble processing what she's witnessing here.

[moonlesstides]

A girl! A girl in very pretty clothes - Grace offers up a shy smile while spinning around in the machine (there is no soap) and speaks; her voice bubbles up in Chrissy's mind without quite crossing her ears: ~Good day! These bathtubs lock you inside for nearly an hour, please be careful with them if you need to breathe.~

Her poet will be so proud of her. Grace is remembering to look after the mortals.

[bubblegumheart]

It's ultimately the voice in her head that snaps Chrissy out of her dazed stare. Bubbly, friendly... and not at all like the one that still occasionally haunts her nightmares.

"Hello!" If nothing else, it's kind of a relief to see that the woman in the washing machine is okay enough to be speaking. "Hang on. I'm going to get you out," Chrissy assures her, already moving to press the button that shuts the machine down so she can pull the door open.

Once that's done, she scoots off to the side to allow the woman some space to climb out. "Thank you for the warning, but these aren't actually bathtubs. They're made for washing your clothes."

[moonlesstides]

Watch closely Chrissy; your new friend here has to contort a bit to get her harpoon out first, but though she flops out of the washing machine like a fish she never quite actually touches the floor. Indeed, she just sorta levitates upright instead of standing.

~For - they're automatic washtubs!~ Grace giggles. ~How very clever! Thank you, miss!~

Laundry time

[configuration_birdwatcher]

It's the clink-clanking that attracts Bastion's attention; they don't need to use the laundry room themself, having very little use for either clothes or bedsheets in their day-to-day life, but that's not a sound the washing machines make in normal operation.

They follow the sound to its source: a running washing machine with an unidentified humanoid spinning around inside, holding a harpoon. Being submerged in soapy water doesn't appear to be doing her any harm, at least?

// Are you stuck? they ask through the glass, their quizzical audio tones distorted by the water.

[moonlesstides]

Round three! Grace is getting better at this, and this time no one is banging on the machine - though Bastion's mechanical sounds do carry through the water. Is this another being like Bonbon? A thinking machine?

Hopefully her new voice comes through. This person is already more articulate than Bonbon typically was around her.

~I am bathing! The machine will let me out at the end, or it has so far. Did you come to wash clothes?~

Look at her, applying things she's learned while on the spin cycle.

[configuration_birdwatcher]

Oh hey, another passenger who communicates through wi-fi. Kind of a weird messaging protocol, but they can parse it.

They shake their head. // The machine made a nonstandard sound. I was curious why.

Now they know the immediate reason: there's someone with a harpoon in it. She doesn't appear to be drowning like a human or getting detergent poisoning like a fish, so it does look like an efficient way to wash herself and her clothes as a single unit. Taking the harpoon along is more puzzling, especially since they can see rust on it.

// Why are you bathing with a harpoon?

In the sea

[maximumcake]

Despite Max's strenuous efforts and Erin's heroic assistance, there are still hot dogs out there in the sea. Max made a solemn promise to get them all no matter how long it takes. He's... both delighted and horrified to see he's got some new help with that. Wow, she's really just shoving them into her mouth soaking wet and raw. Gross. He should stop her, right? He... yeah, he should.

From up at the rail he calls down to her, "Uh, hi! Um. Not to be rude but are you sure you want to eat those?"

[moonlesstides]

The narration would like to stress at this time that when Grace's voice bubbles up in Max's mind her mouth is very much full. She has a tendency to take delicate bites but not actually like, chew, until her cheeks are doing their best hamster impression.

~There is a severe overpopulation of this strange fish. They need to be culled.~

[maximumcake]

Oh. That's... weird. The voice is inside his head just like when Valdis talks in her wolf form. Only, Valdis wouldn't talk with her mouth as full as a cartoon chipmunk with acorns. Oh no. Is... is this Grace? She's not as intimidating as he expected like this.

"Those are not actually fish. But they do need to get taken out of the water. I've been trying to do that for a while."

in the sea!!

[meltokios]

he'd taken to gazing out at the horizon, to watching the waves in the evening. it was calming, and a nice chance to clear his mind and let himself relax: there was no need to put on an act with the open sea as his audience.

well, it was normally relaxing, since there usually wasn't a glistening fish-woman floating about --

" Hey there, miss! Are you some kind of siren? A mermaid? You're not going to lure me into the sea, are you? "

his lips quirk into a smile as he watches her break into the surface, entranced for a moment by the pale cloud of her hair, the elegant curve
of her neck --- and the ... hot dogs in her hands?

why was she just out here gobbling glizzies? is this a free show??

" Y'know, I would have assumed seafood'd be more your thing. "

[moonlesstides]

Grace's one visible eye blinks at this odd stranger. She remembers tales of sirens and mermaids, told by the First Officer after a cup of wine or two, always speaking of deadly beauty, but that was not the curst name the Manor gave her.

As for seafood...

Grace's lips quirk for a moment into a smile, and then she gestures with her harpoon to indicate all the sea that's around her.

[meltokios]

he leans his face into his hand, elbow on the railing. it seems that this odd woman isn't dangerous -- at least for now. he can never be sure since this ship is still unfamiliar to him, and all that.

" Yeah, you're right. If you live in the ocean it makes sense that you'd have seafood all around you... Are you tired of it or something? "

maybe the hot dogs were like a delicacy, something different that she's trying? safe to say he's at least intrigued by her, whether or not she can talk.

" Are you a passenger of this ship, miss mermaid? "

he hasn't seem many non-human passengers yet, but won't completely disregard the possibility. if she can't get on the ship though, maybe he can throw down some different foods from the buffet for her?