[action]

[cobbledtogether.livejournal.com]

[It's strange, this place—or, at least, the little blonde girl wandering through the Gardens thinks so. But, then again, she hasn't ever been allowed out of the laboratory where she was born—or grown, to put it more accurately, but it's not as though she knows the difference—and no one ever thought it necessary to teach her much of anything about what "outside" might be like. Of course she thinks it's strange, this much color and space and freedom.]

[It's a little scary to suddenly be somewhere new with no idea where she is, of course, but at the same time it's a lot more frightening to be where she was before. After being trapped in the lab for so long with no hope of escaping, finding herself where she is— It's confusing, but at the same time she feels relieved. She pays no attention to the direction she's moving in as she wanders through the trees, taking in her new surroundings with wide eyes.]

[She almost doesn't notice when the footsteps first draw close enough for her to hear. When she does, though, she freezes in place, holding her breath as she listens. They're definitely coming toward her— What if it's someone that's come to take her back?! She makes a panicked dive behind the nearest hiding spot she can find, which, in this case, happens to be the trunk of a particularly large tree. As the sound of the approaching person draws closer, she peeks out ever so slightly from behind the tree to find...]

[It's someone she has never seen before. Which, at least in her mind, probably means it's not someone coming to drag her away again. It's also the first person she has seen in this place so far, so curiosity wins out over fear and she shuffles out from her hiding place. She's a rather pitiful sight, to be honest, rail thin and barefoot and clothed in something that's closer to a smock than a dress.]

H— Hello...?


[ ooc: So, Lambda has been wildcarded into bitty!cyborg mode. Feel free to run into her just about anywhere! As a warning, her past deals heavily with human experimentation and abuse related to such, so those topics are likely to come up somewhere in this post. Replies will be coming from minimurakumo. ]

Comments

/cannot tag this fast enough

[highest_caliber.livejournal.com]

[ Subaru had been out jogging as she usually is, so her skates and other gear is nowhere to be seen. She's just in a simple pair of sweatpants with a matching top tied around her waist. Having not quite caught her breath, and is still panting a bit when she turns at the call. ] Huh?

[ A blink. The sight is a little unusual, but just because she's been around for a while now and thought she had, while running about, seen everyone. ] Oh, hi there!

:3c

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

[Despite herself, Lambda shrinks back a little when Subaru responds, one hand still resting against the bark of the tree. Peering up at her through her curtain of overgrown, slightly matted blonde hair, she asks,] Do... Do you know where I am?

Now if LJ would just let me tag consistently...

[highest_caliber.livejournal.com]

[ The first thing she does is kneel down a little closer, and put her hands on her own knee for support. ] You're in the Gardens right now.

Did you just wake up here?

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

The... Gardens? [Obviously, that doesn't help her much. Then, when the question is asked, she nods.]

[highest_caliber.livejournal.com]

That's right. Kind of a generic name, but I don't think the world has any particular name... at least, I never got a designation.

[ritsu-kouyou.livejournal.com]

[Akiha stops when the girl peeks out and greets her. Her first thought was 'not again' but she quickly figures out it's not Gal that has been made a child again. Relieved that she didn't have to deal with a member of her household being that way, she starts to walk again.

And then stops. And sighs.]

...are you lost?

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

[She cringes a little when she is ignored, but when the woman decides to stop and address her after all she straightens up. She isn't anyone she knows, but she seems severe like the scientists in the laboratory, so she decides she should be on her best behavior anyway. She takes a moment to think about the question, biting her lip as she does so.]

...I don't know where I am.

[ritsu-kouyou.livejournal.com]

What a surprise...

[Akiha offers her hand to the girl.]

Come along. My name's Akiha and I'll take you back to my home. We'll get you cleaned up, fed and then we'll try to figure out what's going on.

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

[The offered hand is only met with Lambda darting behind the tree again. She peeks around the side of it, openly suspicious as she regards Akiha.]

You're not— You're not going to take me back to the laboratory, are you?

[The thought that Akiha might lie about her intentions doesn't seem to occur to Lambda. Maybe she has retained some of her childish naivety in spite of her circumstances, or maybe she is just used to the scientists being open about how they intend to treat her no matter how horrible that treatment actually is.]

[tookupthesword.livejournal.com]

[This kid reminds her of someone...]

Hello...

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

[At first, she merely peers up at the other girl rather than speaking. She's young—older than her, obviously, but still much, much younger than the scientists. That makes her feel more at ease.]

Um... Do you know where this place is?

[tookupthesword.livejournal.com]

It's a garden where only girls and animals can be... it's kind of hard to explain. But hey, you're not looking to good, is everything okay?

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

[That news is weirdly relieving. If only girls are allowed, that means not as many of the scientists can look for her here, after all. She nods her head vigorously at the question.]

Uh-huh!

[no-hometown.livejournal.com]

[While out on patrol, Sephiroth had slowed as she sometimes did, as her patrols were not urgent, and she liked time to think, alone. She quickly becomes aware of the child, whose attempt to hide doesn't fool her senses. The smock she's wearing reminds Sephiroth of the clothing she herself wore as a child.

If she's a new arrival, she shouldn't be left on her own. She smiles when the girl addresses her.]

Hello.

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

[When she's greeted in turn, she bites her lip. She's not really sure what to say now, and to someone like her, Sephiroth seems big and intimidating.]

Um...

[She dithers a little longer, then asks:]

Do you know what this place is?

[no-hometown.livejournal.com]

[She lowers herself into a crouch to be at the girl's level.]

I do. It is called the Gardens. There are many of us here. We've all been brought here from our homes.

I can answer any questions you might have about it.

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

[She flinches back a little at even that movement, obviously skittish. She doesn't run away, though, listening to Sephiroth's explanation when she offers it.]

"Brought"? Who brought us?

[hopelessdreamer]

[she blinks at the child, on a walk with her dog, who wags her tail at the girl.]

Hey there. Are you lost...?

[she makes her voice as gentle as possible, not wanting to scare the kid away. At least she's got experience with children.]

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

[Lambda peers back at Gal for a moment, then lets her eyes settle on the mechanical dog. It makes her nervous, but she's not really sure whether or not machines are widespread outside the lab, and this lady seems nice enough...]

I dunno this place...

[She doesn't want to say "lost," since that implies wanting to go back to where she was before.]

[hopelessdreamer]

[she tells the dog to "sit", which it does obediently, cocking its head. Gal herself crouches down.]

I guess that's a "yes", then. It's okay, it's not a bad place. And you'll be able to go home soon.

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

[Lambda's eyes go wide at Gal's last comment, and she shakes her head wildly, blonde hair whipping around her face as she does so.]

No! Don't wanna go back...

[doihavepanties.livejournal.com]

Ah, hello.

Can I help you with anything?

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

Um...

[She fidgets, fingers idly plucking at the bark of the tree's trunk. Eventually, she mumbles out,] I dunno how I got here.

[doihavepanties.livejournal.com]

Really? I see.

What's your name? Mine is Suruga Kanbaru.

[minimurakumo.livejournal.com]

[She does shrink back a little as she is approached, but she seems to realize mid-action that this response is probably unwarranted and tries to stand her ground instead. For a second, she seems reluctant to divulge that information, but then she replies,] Lambda.