Devolve 2.0 The Reboot

Aprileen, so far, was a success. The younger kids had gone bouncing from room to room, collecting small sweets and little trinkets from the people who had volunteered. The costumes had been adorable, even under the somewhat limited circumstances. Once all of the children had had their fun and headed back to their rooms, it was time for the party to start.

The classrooms had been decked out in traditional Aprileen style, with greens and purples, and a small amount of alcohol had been procured from the stores. There wasn't nearly as much food as they'd had at the last party, but there were enough munchies to hopefully keep people happy. A playlist of carefully selected songs had been set up, though they fully expected someone to decide to step in and play DJ at some point during the party, and a dance area had been cleared in the first classroom.

People had started to head down to the party as soon as the last of the kids had cleared their trick or treat spots, and by the time nine rolled around, there were already a fair amount of people hanging out, in costumes that ranged from marker goatees to impressive works of art.

Betsy's day had been dragging on so slowly, and she'd had a headache for much of it, and it was just one of those sort of frustrating days. To keep herself busy, she decided to redo the inventory of the store rooms. Her attempt at finding a distraction was really what it came down to in the end, and that was the major reason she decided to appropriate the few extra bottles of schnapps she found in a dusty back corner.

Mint. The worst kind. But still, she finished taking inventory and then unscrewed the bottle, drinking almost half in one vile go. She had learned in college the therapeutic properties of getting really, really drunk every so often. It would do wonders for her mental well being, she thought, to just let loose for one night without constantly worrying about everything all the time.

She'd scrounged up a Dazzler CD a day or two ago, and now she put it in the boom box someone had stuck in the gym. The bottle was almost gone already, though it was a small one, and so she found another and then clicked it back to her favourite song to sing along.

Standing on a workout bench, Betsy sang into her freshly opened bottle like it was a microphone, shimmying her hips as she got to the chorus. There was a smile on her face as she started to relax, and she knew this had been a good idea, even if it meant she was drinking minty liquor alone in a basement. At least it was the basement of the building she believed housed the only hope the human race had left. This was her life now, in this place without any of the people she'd thought would be in her life. But that was okay, because there were new people around, new people who were worth knowing.

"How's hope feeling today? Tired and sick of this place..."

Ali's voice sounded small to her own ears, accompanied by the piano in the music room. She'd been shocked to find it in tune, only to realize that there were enough big brains in these parts to keep one lousy piano in tune. Her playing started a little clumsy, but she carried on, unperturbed. It smoothed out as she continued on, her long fingers drifting over the keys as if she'd never been away.

"Red wine is fast, at the lip of your glass, saying I'm going to ruin..."

Last night had been fun, but working with Jono and Jay had reminded her of her old band members. Tabby, of course, was whirling like a tornado all over the place, but the others--nobody knew where they were or if they were alive. She didn't think about what happened to them and certainly never allowed herself to hope she might see them again. But she did allow herself to remember them, fondly and a little sadly, as she did now. There was never a song she played, even just goofing around, that El hadn't backed her up on. And Dan, tall and with nervous long-fingered hands that were never still, had always known exactly what to do when she or Tabby was upset.

"Everything...Everything. So its better my sweet, that we hover like bees,'cause there's no sure footing...No love, I believe."

It surprised her how lonely it felt to return to what was, for all intents and purposes, her home. Seeing her mother had been so welcome, so important, but after the first few days the thing she called 'survivor brain' kicked in again. The only thing she cared about was making herself useful, making their fortifications stronger, protecting the home base. It didn't occur to her to socialize, to bond with people. If she was going to be here for a while, obviously that had to change.

Ali had really only meant to play for a minute, just to recharge her batteries a little, but she felt almost drunk off the sound. It was a beautiful piano and as she continued to play, this time leaping into a medley of cartoon themes she'd once learned to entertain her friends' kids, her skin began to glow softly. Ali played, a smile turning into a grin, and shards of rainbow light danced around the room as if spun from invisible prisms.

Who: Betsy and Raven
When: Wednesday evening
What: One evening in Raven's room, Betsy decides to indulge her curiosity and ask Raven a few personal questions.
Where: In bed in Raven's room.
Rating: R for adult situations. Non-explicit mentions of sex.

( Of course, she only really knew enough about her now to know she'd barely scratched the surface. )