028 ☣ public post

[fridgetothefire]

[When the view clicks on, Anya is obviously changed. She has the glowing blue eyes, and her skin looks almost grey. She isn't quite light-skinned enough for classic pallor, but the color is leached from her face. She sits still and straight, with a degree of composure that is, in fact, precisely normal for her. She missed breakfast today, and now it's quite clear why.]

I've allowed Arthas to make me into a zombie for a few days. It is entirely temporary, and I am in control of myself and my faculties. There is no need for anyone to be alarmed.

Comments

[fridgetothefire]

[...you are hiding a thing, Jesse Pinkman]

There's always something on the barge, though. Once I decided, it seemed better to just get it done.

[yeahscience]

Yeah, well, it wasn't. Bad call, okay?

private

[fridgetothefire]

[She hangs up on him, then switches the feed back on, privately this time.]

Why?

private

[yeahscience]

Why do I think it was a bad call that you made yourself a zombie?

Seriously?

private

[fridgetothefire]

Why was it bad call now rather than later.

You were going to say something and then you stopped.

private

[yeahscience]

I did say. Because Lua's had a rough enough time of it already lately, and I don't like the idea of this screwing with her even more.

private

[fridgetothefire]

She's handling it okay so far.

private

[yeahscience]

Oh, yeah. 'Cause she never internalizes anything. She's always like totally straight up, that's just how she rolls. Blunt Force, they call her.

private

[fridgetothefire]

[She's angry at that - but she pushes it down. It's not hers, it doesn't belong to her, it's the wispy corrosive magic that's all through her now. And she doesn't have to lash out just because it wants her to. She looks down, focuses on her hands. She can't see her veins anymore, though she can feel the blood frozen inside them. It's weird.]

When I tell her my reasons for things, she listens. She didn't like it when I killed myself to avoid going crazy when the rabies outbreak happened, but we talked through it. I know she's worried right now, but she's trying to understand. And the more she does, the more she'll know it'll be okay.

private

[yeahscience]

[It's frustratingly reasonable for someone who just killed themselves, and now he's mad too -- madder, anyway -- but he grits his teeth against it. Lua specifically told him not to say anything, and that means he can't say why he's so freaked out over the idea of her getting unduly stressed. Over what that could do.]

Look, Anya. It's her job to look after you, even when you're going all crazy zombie, and that's... whatever, I don't get it, but fine. Except it's my job to look after her now.

private

[fridgetothefire]

I've gone all sane zombie.

[This is pertinent. But she smiles, a little.]

Okay. Good.

private

[yeahscience]

Not from where I'm standing. [He says it lightly, with humor, but it's clear he's still annoyed.

It has not even occurred to him yet, the irony that Lua's inmate of all people just killed herself for a Barge experiment, but he'll think about it later when he's a little less pissed off. He might not exactly laugh, but he'll snort or something.]

This ain't like a tattoo, right. This one goes away.

private

[fridgetothefire]

Yes, for goodness sake. I said it was temporary to start with.

[Not that anyone listened to that.]

Five days, tops. Maybe only three, depending.

private

[yeahscience]

Fine. Whatever. Enjoy... being undead. Don't eat too many brains.

private

[fridgetothefire]

Strictly vegan zombie. Rat brains only, scout's honor.