“Hey! I could just leave you out there, you know.” The shouted indignation made two of the cats open their eyes, but apart from a flick of the tail, they gave no other response to the disturbance. “With all the creepy neighbors.” The neighbors here weren't nearly as unsettling as the ones in the old cell block they'd lived in, but she felt the need to say it anyway. It was the comeback she chose and she'd stick by it.
The color fusion of the room was something she'd gotten used to, so when she heard DJ's remark about the lighting, her immediate response was to glance at the lamps near both beds. The room, formerly for guards, had bright fluorescent overheads, but those were too bright and were rarely used. “Not really. It could be brighter,” she replied, not realizing he was talking about the pink and purple walls. “You can always turn Caitie's lamp off, if you want. She's not around to say anything right now.”
Six animals in one room was a little excessive, yeah, and Maddie always had to remind herself that she was responsible for five of them. The duck had been her idea, and the cats, well, those had been a present for Caitie. She smirked when he greeted one of the cats. “One thing about it is we're never bored or lonely in here.” Always a cat to play with or a bird to pester. “Maybe I got the accidental hoarding thing from Mom. She collected kids and now I'm collecting animals.”
Resuming her seat in front of her keyboard, Maddie nodded. “Yeah, it gets messy as crap in here sometimes. And extra stinky because they're all cooped up in here for the winter, but I like having the company.” She didn't like being alone, so even though she had endless complaints about the mess and the spacial issues, she actually preferred having a room full of animals.
She leaned back in her chair, tipping it back on two legs and grinning when he mentioned the toilet table. “Ah, crappy memories. If it wasn't so gross, I'd say I missed that t-table, but I don't.” She was sure there were people who saw the in-cell toilet as convenient... but those people were just as gross as the potty they used. “See, you admitting to using one of my ideas just gives more proof that I'm the most creative one in the family, so thanks for those points.”
Maddie looked at the tube of temporary green hair dye sitting on the table beside her, then back to the notes she'd jotted down for the poem-turned-song. If she didn't talk about the song first, she probably never would...
“Wanna dye your hair green for your favorite sister? I did George's yesterday. I'd be willing to go with the temporary dye, if you'd prefer.”