15strangers | F̀I҉̵N̶ÁL͘ ̵̧̀WE҉̧̀E͞K̷̨

[It's folded from a piece of lined paper... a letter.

The contents, though... it's immediately plain this is something Jonathan hastily tacked up as he headed out behind Vita, just in case they didn't return. The letter was folded to hold a braided lock of light blue hair, secured with beads at one end and what hopefully isn't dried blood at the other.]

[ Two things immediately became apparent to Karma the instant that paper was opened, and that was him spotting his name written at the top... and the braided lock of hair.

His breath caught in his throat and all the color drained from his face. This hair was... The color was unmistakeable to who it belonged to, but what was more worrying was the fact one end of it looked like there could be dried blood on it. It was enough that he reached out to grab the hair with one hand before it fell to the ground, which meant they could fully open the letter.

The world suddenly stopped mattering around him as he began to read it, and he felt like his whole body was submerged in ice. He couldn't breathe, his chest tight. Karma vaguely was aware his body was trembling a little, breaths ragged. ]

Nagisa... Nagisa...

[ His chest hurt.

He was in shock. There was... anger. Sadness. Pain. He knew Nagisa was strong as hell and he would keep fighting even if he had some hair yanked out, but this was .. too much. What if in their absences he'd gotten killed? Their worlds truly thrown into chaos.

Be Strong.

The very real possibility of the one he cared the most for being gone felt like a knife was shoved into his heart. He didn't even realize even as he grit his teeth, that tears were running down his face. The strength in his legs left him and he sunk to the ground, and in a gesture Caleb might notice as fairly familiar, Karma balled his hand into a fist and slammed it down as he could. ]

GODDAMN IT!!!

[ His other hand was still holding onto the lock of hair and he was almost hyper ventilating now, about to slam his fist back down. The tears wouldn't stop.

It was too real of a possibility that Nagisa was actually gone and he couldn't ignore it. ]

Edited 2020-02-25 03:33 (UTC)

[Shit. He isn't really sure who Nagisa is, but he kneels down and grabs Karma's arm gently before he can slam it down again.]

... I'm sorry. Do you want to leave? Take a break? We can come back later, or I can get you if I see anything relevant to you...

[ Karma jolted a little when his arm was grabbed, body still shaking and his breaths coming ragged and uneven. He eventually looked to Caleb, and immediately tried to open his mouth to say something but nothing came out at first.

The pain clutching at his heart like a vicious vice was unyielding. His mind was spinning a mile a minute right now. ]

I... A break... Leaving now.. I can't...

[ This feeling. He hated it. It was threatening to overtake him and he didn't want to let it as it would suffocate him in it's depths. ]

This... It's his... Nagisa is my...

[ A hand shot to touch against his heart, clutching at it. Hopefully it would possibly make it clear, what with the anguished look on his face.

The one he loved. ]

All right.

[He stands, and offers a hand to help Karma up. The least he can do is escort the boy to the door.]

I'll keep looking around, like I said. Come find me later if you need to talk.

[ A part of him knew he should stay and keep looking, too. Though the part of him still reeling over this was too much to ignore.

Perhaps that was why he eventually resigned himself to that it was for the best to step away from this. He put the braided carefully into his pocket before taking Caleb's hand, so he could get to his feet. ]

Y-Yeah. I... need time to... process this.

[ Even if the punch to the floor had hurt like hell, it didn't stop him from raising that arm up and wiping away his tears somewhat. Holding the other one out towards that letter. ]

Gonna take... that letter and that set of clothes I saw when... we first walked in. I just... I'm sorry...

One second. Let me see your hand - are you bleeding? I have bandages.

[He does hand over the letter, at least.]

[ Karma hesitated a little, and that was when he turned his hand over. Sure enough, because the force of his punch came down against a hard, carpeted floor, it had cause enough damage that he really was bleeding.

Not that he really felt it right then, anyway. The pain just kind of nonexistent at the time. Especially with how he easily just made to fold up the letter and put it in his other pocket. ]

...Huh. Guess I really am... bleeding, then.

[Caleb sighs and pulls out some antibiotic ointment, putting a thin layer on a strip of bandage before binding Karma's hand gently.]

I'm one to talk about taking caer of yourself, but... try to, at least?

[ It takes a second but he nodded, attempting a small smile. ]

Alright. I'll try. There's a lot to think about right now.

[ He already moved over to grab the coat, mask and gloves, careful of his hand as he did so. ]

Thanks. I'm sorry you had to see me like that... but I'd have done worse to myself if you hadn't been around.

You saw me the other day. I understand.

You're probably one of the few who do.

[ Once he had the things he needed, he almost headed all the way out, stopping one last time to look over his shoulder at him. ]

Good luck in your search.

[He nods and heads back towards the hall closet. He opens it gingerly, peeking inside.]

[Anything there?]

[Well, looks like you hit pay dirt, Caleb. Maybe. For starters, a cute maid outfit is hanging up in here, with plenty of space for its frilly underskirts to floof out. You like clothes, riiiiiiight?

But there's also a staff seemingly made from some kind of bone resting against the back wall of the closet, and a damaged but distinctive tie emblazoned with a crescent moon draped over a hanger beside the maid costume. Seems like Vita was using this as catch-all storage....]

[Clothes are nice, but he's not into that. He'll take the bone staff as well as the tie. The tie seems like something he might be able to return to someone, and he wants to examine the staff further.]

[Anything else visible once he moves the large item out of the way? Or can he proceed to the next room?]

[Nope, the closet out here is clear!

So... where is he heading next?]

[~~Matt is making up layout 'cause he doesn't know -~~ Well, it's a one bedroom house. Let's check the bedroom!]

[There's nothing weird about this.]

[~~Lee's been working off of a modified Lustron "Westchester" floorplan, just for the record, but that's fine!~~

Again... it's not a den of sex horrors. Hell, the bed's even made, with twice the number of pillows as their houses includes and an extra blanket nabbed from the vending machine. There's a strand of Christmas lights plugged in and "tacked up" above the head of the bed with magnets filched from the fridges in two houses. (It's a little lopsided, but... the strand of lights outlines a heart.)

There's a closet back in one corner, and a long vanity with a mirror and storage around it built in along one bedroom wall.]

Edited 2020-02-25 19:17 (UTC)

[He figured. Jonathan seemed like the guy who needs pushing out of his comfort zone in the bedroom~~, but that’s a topic for PSLs~~.]

[He snags the blanket for bedding, since he keeps having people over at his house, and unless it looks super weird he’s going to look at the storage next.]

[Well, before he gets to the cabinets and drawers, there's a notepad set neatly centered on the vanity, one page folded back. He might want to read that...

...and there is something written on the page already turned over, too.]

[He reads it and just stands there for a moment. How would he act if it were Astrid here? He’s not sure he’d have made a much different choice, though they probably wouldn’t be living together.]

[... Hm? What’s this new page?]

[You know how he said he tried to write letters to everyone? He got three done, including that one mostly to Karma. Three and a half with that first page Caleb read.

It's the first two.]

[He swallows hard and sits on the floor a moment. He never got a chance to explain - well. If Beatrice is around maybe she can.]

[He takes a deep breath and tucks the letters away in his jacket.]

... I am sorry, Jonathan. If we could have traded...

[Well. No use in sitting here. If there’s nothing else in the vanity, he’ll move on.]

[Well, he's welcome to look in the drawers, but if he's headed to the closet, that's his prerogative.

So - bedroom closet or rest of the house?]

[Hey guess what mun forgot how to Skyrim search. Yes, drawers first.]

F̀I҉̵N̶ÁL͘ ̵̧̀WE҉̧̀E͞K̷̨

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