Room 218, Thursday Afternoon

[glacial_queen]

Spending one day hiding recuperating was one thing. No one could blame her for needing a day to adjust to the idea that she'd been very nearly killed. On a meat-tree. A day where she could hide, skip classes, ignore everyone--or nearly everyone--and just huddle under the covers for hours on end.

But putting everyone off for a second day would just be inexcusable. So rather than pull the blankets back over her head when her alarm went off, she made herself get up, shower, and head to class. After classes had ended, she allowed herself a nap--almost a week's worth of violence and trauma would wear anyone out--but after she woke up again, she made herself be sociable and productive.

Granted, that had ended up with her getting a surprise budgie, but on the scale of Fandom strange, that barely rated. So she decided to clean her room, put away the stuff from the cabins, and just generally make busy-work for herself so she could say she was being productive without actually having to think about anything. Besides, she doubted her texts from yesterday could buy her more than a day's grace, and she wanted her room to be presentable before anyone stopped to check in on her.

If nothing else, she wanted to make sure there was nothing on the floor around where she'd set up Warren's perch. She liked her belongings budgie-dropping free, thanks.

[Establishy, but open to folks who know about Karla's run-in with the maenad.]

Comments

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Dinah had just come from the Diner, with Nanaimo bars to go, and knocked her fingers on the door carefully. "I come bearing chocolate and a deep need for explanations."

[glacial_queen]

"I love chocolate and I'm prepared to offer said explanations," Karla said, opening the door to let Dinah in. She forewent the chocolate bars for a moment to just grab onto Dinah and give her a giant hug. "I'm glad to see you," she said quietly.

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Dinah hugged her back, hard, letting the bars float in the air and said, "And now? I'm even more worried than I was. But very very glad you're in once piece."

[glacial_queen]

"I did kind of a lousy job at staying that way," Karla admitted, letting go so Dinah could make it further than the doorway. "I owe Raven for me even being here at all."

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Dinah closed her eyes, counted to five, and said, "Okay, so, that's not heart attack material." Was this what it felt like to be Barbara, sometimes, when Helena went on a tear? "Sit down, take a Nanaimo, and start at the beginning," she said, taking one for herself and keeping an arm around Karla.

[glacial_queen]

Karla obeyed, though the 'start at the beginning' had to wait while she tried the bar and moaned happily. "Oh, this is good. How many of these did you grab?" Whatever the number, it wasn't enough.

Halfway through her bar, she started her promised explanation. Since this was Dinah, she left nothing out, including how the knife felt when it slipped into her stomach and how she'd poisoned the maenad before removing her heart. Karla kept her eyes down as she related it, worried about Dinah's reaction.

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

"Six. Francine swears by them." Enough said.

Dinah listened to the whole re-telling without comment, although she went pale in a couple places and bit her tongue more than once. She hugged Karla harder, and trying for lightness, said, "Fastest recovery time ever. I owe Raven a ton of chocolate now."

She was thinking about the poisoning, and the heart ripping out, trying to make it all fit together in her head, and studying Karla at the same time.

[momslilassassin]

"I have pretty much the entire burger menu in my hands right now," Ben called, "so you better let me in."

And hello to you, too.

[glacial_queen]

Karla knew better than to argue, even if she hadn't already promised him a week of free fussing. "Good," she said, giving him a ghost of a smile as she opened the door. "I'm hungry. Can I help you with anything?"

[momslilassassin]

"No," Ben said tightly. "You get to go sit back down."

[glacial_queen]

"You don't even know what I did yet!" Karla protested, though she turned to sit as she was bid. "I could have been good!"

And maybe the sun went backwards for a day. These were both things that could happen.

[momslilassassin]

Ben put the food down. "Jedi," he said, "and one of your best friends, which means I can tell when something's wrong. Want to try that again?"

[glacial_queen]

"I was saying I could have been, not that I was," Karla pointed out, reaching for a fry. Warren, from his perch on her bureau, cheeped a bit.

"Not for you," she told him. Though, honestly, he was probably agreeing with Ben.

"I have all my limbs?" she offered.

[boywonder03.livejournal.com]

Tim knocked on Karla's door. "You around?" he asked.

[glacial_queen]

"I'm resting!" Karla called. She opened her door with Craft, though, her response being more of an assurance than an excuse to turn Tim away. She was sitting up in bed, surrounded by pillows, a book set down next to her.

"Are you here to be all scoldy, Tim?" she asked, with big eyes.

[boywonder03.livejournal.com]

Tim folded his arms across his chest and gave her a stubborn look. "You did go to an evil orgy without bringing me along."

[glacial_queen]

"Well, I wasn't the one in charge of invitations!" Karla protested. "Besides, what would you have done if I came to your room and asked if you wanted to go to a orgy with me, huh?"

[boywonder03.livejournal.com]

"I would've wanted to know what the hell you were thinking, same as I do now," Tim said. "What happened?"

[glacial_queen]

"A friend came and explained that a maenad was enslaving the minds of her friends and neighbors, whipping them into a frenzy and feeding off the emotions she inspired," Karla explained. See? Perfectly rational reason to go! "She had also attacked several people, including my friend, who nearly died. She was trying to summon her ancient god through a mix of sex and blood. She needed to be stopped. And this wasn't something that the local police force was ready to handle."

[trigons_child]

Raven had seen Karla in class that morning, but they hadn't talked. So later that afternoon she came by to check on her. "Karla, may I come in?" she said, totally not like a vampire.

[glacial_queen]

"Are you coming in to scold, too?" Karla asked, sounding a little sulky from her spot on the bed. Then she offered Raven a smile. "Even if you are, you're welcome to come in, Raven. You're my hero."

[trigons_child]

"Scold?" Raven said, moving inside. "Why would I wish to do that, unless you have done something you should not? I merely wished to check on you and make sure you were all right."

[glacial_queen]

"Everyone else is," Karla replied, moving over on the bed to give Raven a place to sit down. "Because they were worried," she added, since, honestly, that's where the scolding came from. "And now they're all grateful to you, since you're the only reason I made it back here."

[trigons_child]

Raven sat down on the bed, though she was careful not to get too close. "I do not know what I would have done if I had been unable to heal you," she said quietly. Probably ripped out the maenad's heart herself and then turned on the townspeople. "I just wish I had not lost control as I did."

[glacial_queen]

"I can't tell you how grateful I am that you did," Karla said, completely serious. "Raven, can I ask...how close...? Was I, I mean. When you Healed me."

For some reason, that had been preying on her mind since she came home. Just how close to death she'd come.