crazy, but that's how it goes

[theluckygirl]

WHO: Claire Temple
WHERE: Fountain and settling in
WHEN: September 2 - 4
OPEN TO: All
WARNINGS: None, but will updated if necessary

---

[Fountain]

Like probably a lot of other people, once Claire was out of the fountain and able to look around, there wasn't much convincing that this was all some crazy dream. How else would one explain being teleported from the second largest city in the world to a place that looked like the population barely met 100.

And as nuts as her life had become, there was no way this involved the Hand.

Oddly enough, even though she kept telling herself it was a dream, it didn't feel like one. Physically and mentally speaking. She felt wide awake. So, Claire sat there soaking wet, looking at the fountain, trying to figure it out as she pulled the bag off her back and opened it up to hopefully find more clues.

"You know what this is, Claire? This is you finally cracking." she muttered to herself.


[Around the Village]

So, she wasn't crazy, but this was still insane and what made it worse was that Claire was by herself. No Luke, no Colleen, or Danny. Hell, she would have been happy to have Jessica around to share in the absurdity of the place. Then again, no. Having Jessica there would likely result in a lot of beaten up people.

But it would keep her busy.

Thoughts such as these ran through the nurses head as she explored the area over a couple of days. She checked out the inn and the hospital, which were both a stones throw from the house she claimed for herself. Everything else was more or less found as she walked past it.

And despite the new face looking calm and relaxed, she was doing a little freaking out on the inside. Oh, she definitely didn't want to be there. But by the third day in, she was quite aware that going home wasn't going to be happening any time soon.

Comments

fountain;

[ex_assertiveness90]

"Everything all right?"

It's a woman's voice, from just beyond Claire's shoulder — clear, crisp, very English. Stella had been out for a walk when she'd noticed the woman near the fountain, dressed all in light grey, still dripping wet as if she'd just climbed out. Another new arrival, and — well, Stella isn't the best at being the welcoming committee, but she can try. Her demeanor is calm, focused, but alert for trouble.

All right isn't exactly the operative phrase, she knows that. But this new woman is a good deal more calm than some people are when they appear here, she's not panicking too much — in short, it seems like she's got her shit together. She looks capable. It's good to see.

[theluckygirl]

Claire was busy checking out the things in her backpack when she jumped slightly at the sound of the woman's voice. Of course, there was full body twist to look around and after a few long seconds finally answered more than a little suspiciously.

"Well that all depends on how you define all right. About ten minutes ago I crawled out of that fountain with this on my back." Claire shook her head. "Last I remember I wasn't anywhere near water, or even creepy abandoned villages. So, I guess you can say the jury's still out."

Besides the words, the nurses tone was still casual, maybe even a bit on the amused side.

[ex_assertiveness90]

"I'm afraid that's standard arrival procedure here," Stella says, matter-of-fact rather than trying to be too sympathetic, reacting more to Claire's composed approach than anything — though she's taken note of the suspicion, too. It's not entirely unwarranted; they don't know each other, after all. She gives Claire plenty of room to get herself sorted out, staying clear of her personal space for the moment.

"Welcome to the village. It hasn't got a name, and I'm afraid that unless you're really lucky, you're going to be stuck here for a while." A beat, to let her absorb that, then, "If you'd like a chance to dry off and change your clothes, we've an inn not too far from here."

Hospital (Around the Village)

[the_scandal_of_italy]

With the plague no longer a matter of concern, the herbs in the clinic needed to be restocked, used optimistically in the hope of curing the sick. Perhaps she should have guessed that they would do nothing, the nature of this place mystical and fickle. There were never easy answers, but Lucrezia still struggled with that concept.

After gathering several plants from the forest, she returned to the hospital, sorting them and placing them in the empty jars scattered across the counter. The sound of the door caught her attention, now trained to listen for those that might need help. She turned, surprised by a face that she had never seen before. Another new arrival and one with perfect timing. Had she arrived a week earlier, she might have caught the same plague the others had. She would at least not have to be frightened by the strange things that happened in the village, at least not yet.

Wiping her hands, she stepped forward with a bright smile. "Are you all right? You're not injured?"

[theluckygirl]

Claire was getting used to the looks of surprise by being the new face in town. Still, she returned the smile with a friendly one of her own and shook her head while she slowed and stopped a bit away from the woman.

"No, I'm good. Or, at least I think I am." she answered, taking a look around quickly. She still wasn't sure if she was crazy and hallucinating all this. "Are you in charge here?"

[the_scandal_of_italy]

With so few people, it was easy to find the new arrival among the crowd. She could remember feeling lost and uncertain and sometimes still felt that way. No matter how long she lived in this village, it didn't change how out of pace she felt. She could empathize with Claire and the others that had followed after Lucrezia. It was why she offered a friendly smile now, as though they weren't strangers but friends.

"No," she was quick to shake her head. "I only am a nurse. We had illness in the village and our supply of herbs was low." She offered out her hand. "I'm Lucrezia."

The Inn (Around the Village)

[thekittenqueen]

It was routine for Margaery to spy a new face in the inn and approach them to offer them a friendly face among the confusion and possible fear they felt. In seeing the new arrival, she was quick to get to her feet, setting aside her mending for the day. It shouldn't matter, but seeing the familiar scrub color motivated her all the more. Whatever it might mean, they were in the same grouping together.

"Here, come have a seat." She nearly reached out to place her hand on Claire's arm, but restrained that desire in case it spooked the woman. "It is quite a bit to take in, isn't it?" The weather was at least warm enough to keep her from catching a chill or having to struggle through the snow to visit the inn.

"I'm Margaery Tyrell. I would say 'welcome', but I can't imagine that is something one wants to hear after arriving in the most terrifying way possible."

[theluckygirl]

Apparently the inn was the place to be, or so Claire had been told. Not just when it came to food and supplies but for the company, too. It wasn't her first time there, but upon arriving, she was still clearly the new person.

She looked at the other woman, huffing a slightly amused laugh. "No, I can definitely think of a lot of other ways to arrive in a place. Like a car, or bike... space ship?"

After sitting Claire reached over and held out a hand. "I'm Claire, it's nice to meet you Margaery."

[thekittenqueen]

She took Claire's hand and gave it a small shake. While she knew what that gesture meant and had offered it a few times, it was still a strange way to greet someone, in her opinion. "Claire?" She beamed up at her. "That is the same name as my housemate in the village. I don't suppose you have met her yet?"

There were a number of things to take in, including the various residents. It would take a few days for her to meet everyone properly.

"Did you decide to stay in one of the houses or here at the inn?"

Day 3 - House 39 and 40 (Around the Village)

[3ofswords]

There's a note for Bodhi, weighted down under one of the earthenware mugs of his tea set, and a second in his pack for the Orientation house. He hadn't detailed his reason for leaving, only where he meant to be, and an apology that he can't say for how long. His gifts had returned almost a month on the last stretch, but dimmer, less complete. He'd even had a couple of days back in the dark before their return, stronger than they've been since his arrival.

Kira worries at is own hands, closing the door of his outskirt-house. He'd chosen it for this exact reason, but even this isn't far enough--the number of people who might visit, the number of things he's expected to be doing.

He needs a break. He needs to slip across the gap in the wall and fend for himself, the dog and crow at his side, and no one's feelings getting tangled up with his own. He'd already felt himself shutting down at the meeting, paranoia overriding anything he wanted to feel for himself. In this state, another disaster might break him. In this state, at the very least, he won't be of much use when one occurs.

Instead of new disaster, however, when he descends the steps with the black shepherd at his heels and the crow on his shoulder, there's a woman between his house and the site of an old one. Ren's house is as gutted as its ever been, lightning-struck, burned, looted, and shaken down in the quake. There's enough--it's peaty, humid, hangs in the air. That's concern, and it makes sense when he doesn't recognize the face, or the closer to pristine state of her scrubs.

No explanation can really help that feeling, but he draws alongside as his dog moves first to investigate, tail low and wagging. "Pretty much everything that can happen here, did happen to this house," he says. "How long have you been here?"

[theluckygirl]

The house, or what used to be one, reminds Claire too much of the large building she saw come down before a short time later, ending up here. She's been standing there for awhile now and can't seem to move away from it. Mostly because of who enters her mind when she stares into the rubble.

But the movement in her periphery steals her attention - first to the dog and then to its owner whom she can barely hear through the sound of static inside her own head.

"Day before yesterday," Claire answered, shaking off the way the house made her feel. She offered a smile. "I'm guessing you've been here a lot longer. But how long?"

[3ofswords]

"It'll be a year, once winter rolls back around." Shorter, hopefully, than his last. It must have been February when he left home, only to come right back to the start of it here. "Shit, for all I know it's my birthday this week."

It's a great gift he's been given, driving him out of the life he's managed to make. That's the place, though. You settle and they shake you loose. Hopefully never as hard as they shook Ren. "This was still standing when I showed up." The way he says it makes it sound like a shame, like something of historic note was brought down, instead of just a house. Maybe that's how it goes when the village's history dates back no more than a year and a half in anyone's memory.

"I was kind of--heading out," he adds, shifting the pack and crow on his shoulders, Aurora busy tugging at a root washed out of the dirt. He took up the idea of an orientation house for more than Veronica, though. Walking away, even for a reason, seems cruel. "But if you want anything, I've got a house to provide it, or a brain to pick if you just want to walk along for awhile."

She seems calm enough, maybe the type to bury it and pull it up later, he can't see the harm.

hospital

[notsocommon]

Helen had been grateful to have a new face poke her head in at the hospital and more grateful still when said new face turned out to be a qualified nurse. Medical personnel were in short shrift and she could always use more hands. If the village insisted on coming apart at the seams every few months with earthquakes, Helen wanted enough doctors and nurses around to deal with patching people up.

She'd only had time for a brief introduction the day before but when she saw Claire again a day or so later, Helen gave her a warmer smile and tipped her head back toward the hospital. "Are you in want of something to do? I'm cataloging herbs today."

[theluckygirl]

It was an odd contrast to go from working her ass off seven days a week to barely nothing at all and then keeping busy with keeping her friends alive. At some point she was going to have to try finding another way of making money. But, arriving there put a hitch in those plans, so for now she'd have to file that as 'note to self'.

Claire approached slowly, giving a nod. "They say schedules are a good thing. But," she replied, expression shifting animatedly to show she didn't believe that. "Can you really keep busy here?"

She supposed one could. That might be why Helen was cataloging herbs between patients.

Sarcasm at its finest folks.

[notsocommon]

"You can create the illusion of busy in the lulls between natural disasters," Helen deadpanned. "It isn't exactly the best coping method but it does keep me from going insane."

She smiled a bit and shook her head. "I've been here over a year now. I haven't had access to any calendar other than the sun and moon and no way to tell time other than sunrise or sunset. I've had to keep my hands busy to keep my mind from running away from me."

around the village

[bit_fairytale]

It's not like Amy stalks the hospital or anything, except that she does. Sitting outside of it, she keeps waiting most days to see if Rory is bound to turn up again. If he does, she's fairly sure that he'll try the hospital, the beautiful dark blue house that looks just like the TARDIS, and wherever there are the most people. Because of that, Amy tends to spend a few hours at each and it's the hospital she's at when someone new comes poking around.

Staring at her is rude, even if Amy's never given a damn about manners before, but as she tucks her long leg under her, she can't help but feel like she ought to at least say something. It's not like you get away with being rude very long in a small place like this and Amy doesn't want the hassle. "You looking for something in particular?"

[theluckygirl]

Manners aren't something that Claire pays too much attention to anyway. Her days as a nurse at one of the busiest hospitals brought her patients that were typically drug addicts and/or people who felt the world owed them something. But then again, that was the general population wherever you went.

At the voice, Claire turned, facing the redhead a bit more. "I was told one of these buildings was the hospital. This it?"

[bit_fairytale]

"This is it," she confirms with a nod of her head, lifting her knee as she settles into a sit against the front door without blocking anyone's path in or out. "You a patient?" she asks, trying to scan the woman quickly with her eyes to see whether she could make her own guesses about whether she was or not. "Or just here for the sights?"

She's getting pretty good at figuring out who's new here, if she does say so herself, and Amy would put money on this woman being at least two weeks or less here in their crazy little village of fun.

hospital

[frankensteinian]

Erik hasn't ever been in the hospital as a patient. He's luckily only ever had minor injuries, and Claire had patched them up at her house or his. But he knows where the hospital is, and that Claire spends a good portion of her day there. He has nothing else to do at the moment, since there's a good supply of firewood right now, nothing is happening at the inn, and anyway, he can't spend all his time working.

So he decides to head over to the hospital and see if Claire is busy, or if there's something he could do to help. He doesn't see her right away when he walks in, so he calls out, "Hello?"

Re: hospital

[theluckygirl]

Claire had long since learned the various levels of a persons voice when it came to needing help and the man who was calling out was definitely not in the kind of help that was urgent.

Returning from the supply closet where she was taking inventory for her own personal curiosity, Claire emerged and looked at the man.

"I guess it's a good thing you're not bleeding." she said, slowing to a stop a few feet away from where Erik stood. "And if you were I can only offer you a bandaid. But hi, I'm Claire. What can I help you with?"

[frankensteinian]

"I have a source to keep me supplied in bandaids when I need them anyway." He doesn't know where Claire gets them all from, but he's glad she has them. Now if only he'd stop needing them.

"I'm just here looking for Claire. The other one." Because now they have more than one, apparently.

[around the village]

[guessihavelostcount]

"Hey!" Claire called out from where she was walking towards the inn, spying the woman nearby and guessing that this had to be the new addition to the medical team that she had heard about. Not from anyone specific but she had overheard mention of her and she smiled when the woman turned to look at her.

Slowing down after moving quickly to catch up with her, she held out her hand. "Hey, sorry for just barging over but I heard about a new girl in the area. I'm Claire, it's nice to meet you."

[theluckygirl]

Getting shouted at like that back home was a hourly occurrence, truth be told and given there wasn't many other people around, Claire was pretty sure it was directed at her. When she turned she waited for the unfamiliar face to get closer.

At hearing the name, this nurse grinned a little and reached out to give the other's a shake in greeting. "Ahhh," she laughed. "We finally meet. It's a good thing I'm not blonde because that would make things either frustrating, or funny. It's nice to meet you, Claire, I'm also Claire."

Sept 3

[pretendtoneedme]

He'd inherited a dog from a friend who'd disappeared a couple of months ago, and unfortunately that dog was still pretty young and liable to be excitable when he was distracted. Which was why Claire would suddenly find herself the target of one Norwegian Elkhound approaching the mostly-adult stage following her scent from around the inn. Clint didn't like to walk into the building covered in blood - no matter how careful he was with his butchering there was always a bit of spillage - and so he'd paused for a quick wash-up out of the rain barrel out back. Normally the dog was good about staying nearby, but at eight months old, sometimes the training still needed to be reinforced. He's not barking or jumping at her, though, just curious and maybe a little wary. She's not "pack," after all.

[theluckygirl]

No, Claire definitely wasn't part of the pack and likely wouldn't become one for awhile yet. That thought hadn't bothered her so much. In her world, she was used to not standing still for long. But judging by the all around casual tone of her new surroundings, that was 'culture shock' here. But she was confident she would figure something out.

And though the dog may be wary of her, Claire is definitely not of it. She loves dogs, in fact. A hell of a lot more than cats. So, she lowers to a knee and gives it a friendly smile.

"Okay you're pretty cute, but you're missing an owner. Where'd you ditch them?" she said, extending her hand out slowly so not to spook him.