[semi-open] june log;

[hardcase]

WHO: Randall Flagg & You
WHAT: Reconnecting with his followers, bonding with cellmates, jailbird life
WHERE: The dungeons
WHEN: Pre-event and probably all of June

[ closed to lloyd and nadine ]

[ His connection with Nadine is broken, so he can't call her down whenever he wants her. Lloyd, too, is out of his reach. He can do nothing but wait for his bride and his right-hand man to choose to pay him a visit of their own free will.

It's a sort of powerlessness he isn't accustomed to, and isn't fond of. When they come down to the dungeons he perks right up, a big smile on his face. ]

There you are. I was missing you, you know that? My heart's a-longing for you both.

[ Hey, he's in no position not to schmooze right now. If this kind of attentions keeps them coming back, he'll provide it. ]

[ closed to cellmates ]

[ He's got pretty good cellmates, all things considered. None of them have seen him for the vile creature he is yet, none of them are looking to pick a fight with him and play King of the Cell, and sometimes they're even good conversational partners. So, it's only sensible to keep them on his side.

As soon as Nadine and Lloyd leave, he takes the food they've snuck him (mostly fruits and pastries, with a few pieces of chicken) and divides it evenly by four, keeping one portion for himself and giving the rest to his cellmates. ]

That should tide us over for a while.

[ Yes, he could take it all, but that might start a fight and he doubts it would endear him to the others if he stayed in the corner eating his spoils and snapping at anyone who came close to him like some kind of hungry animal. ]

[ cells - open to visitors ]

[ When he's not chatting up his cellmates, Flagg spends most of his time leaning up against the bars, peering at the visitors that come down. He doesn't speak to them unless they stop, he'll just sit there humming something (usually his own rendition of Jailhouse Rock) and eagerly make eye contact whenever he can.

It makes him feel like he's trying to be the most interesting animal at the zoo, hoping that the next tourist will stop in front of his cage and feed him from an overpriced bag of peanuts instead of moving on to the next exhibit.

Luckily, he's not too bothered by dehumanizing experiences. He hasn't been human an over a thousand years at least, so this is all 'been there, done that'.

If someone stops in front of his cell, he'll give them a big smile. ] Howdy.

[ rec yard - open to other prisoners ]

[ Flagg makes sure to check up on anyone he's spoken with here when they get sent to the yard. Though not as valuable as his cellmates, it's still to his benefit that more of them are with him than against him. Eddie Dean's a lost cause, so with him Flagg keeps his distance aside from shooting him a fierce grin every now and then.

With everyone else, though, he'll approach, maybe touch them on the shoulder if he feels like they're close enough for that, and say: ] How're ya holding up?

Comments

[nadine_he_loves]

[While Nadine is angry and distraught at being separated from Flagg, at least she's using her time in the castle above to learn as much as she can. Or try to, anyhow, it isn't as easy a task as it may seem.

Still. There are some things she's learned, and Lloyd's been socializing and getting the measure of their fellows. So down they go, with food hidden on their persons, to visit with and report to Flagg.

Nadine goes to the bars quickly, slipping a hand between them to reach for him. The sight of him, smiling and welcoming with his eyes, makes something in her stutter and twist in hurt and want alike. Again the lack of feeling him strikes her, but she pushes it away.]

We're here now.

[jealousbitch]

[ As far as Lloyd's concerned, he and Nadine make a pretty good team. She's learning the magic and doing the book stuff, and he can focus on the people part of it. The locals aren't exactly interested in him getting chatty, but he's thinking that everybody else stuck here like they are will feel a certain way about it.

He hangs back a step or two, letting the two of them have their moment. It's gotta be hell being so close and so far.

Flagg's words make his heart feel aflutter, but it's not difficult to butter him up. ]

We'd have come sooner, but they ask too many damn questions.

[hardcase]

I know. It's not your fault.

[ He takes Nadine's hand in one hand, and Lloyd's in the other, squeezing them both gently. He smiles, his eyes full of good cheer. ]

Have you found anything out? [ He doesn't ask in a demanding way, he's still happy to see them even if they've got nothing. It means they're still loyal, even when he has to telepathic hold on them. ]

[nadine_he_loves]

A little.

[Nadine grasps his hand, forehead to the bars. The heat of his skin is welcome, a physical connection in place of the spiritual one they usually share. This is worse than in Boulder, at least then they could still communicate in their special way, she could still hold him and feel him and be with him for snatches of time. Here? When she leaves this room he's gone from her.

She wishes she had more to offer, something helpful or useful, but... at least there's something. More knowledge, a slightly better understanding of this world they've been brought to.]

I've been researching, Lloyd's been chatting up other 'free' prisoners. And we've both tried our luck with the locals. They weren't lying about sharing their magic, I've already learned a little. Magic...it's connected to this...big thing towering out in the wilderness, I guess? But there's a lot of it here, and from what we can tell, magic is really important to Thorne. I think their society might be based on it, or revolve around it. They still aren't letting us just roam around wherever we want, though, so we've only seen what they let us see so far.

[jealousbitch]

[ Flagg always runs so warm, it's like being close to a furnace. Instead of feeling overbearing, it's nice. Especially now, when everything is so uncertain and none of them are in Vegas anymore. They don't have the footing they once did, and whatever power they took from Flagg doesn't help.

Lloyd squeezes his hand back gently. ]

Nobody really knows why they're here aside from what those stuffy wizards are tellin' everybody. Aside from us, most people seem to be from different worlds and shit. Some people are pissed, but others are taking kinder to it. There's a black market that'll be handy for getting our hands on some hefty magic shit. Potentially.

And nobody knows why the fuck people are down here and others aren't. Doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to it, far as I can tell?

[hardcase]

I've got a good hunch about why I'm here, but there doesn't seem to be any real pattern, as far as I can tell.

[ Something else catches his attention, though, and his eyes narrow. ]

What's this towering thing they've been talking about? Is it a literal tower, or something else entirely?

[nadine_he_loves]

[Nadine shakes her head.]

More like an obelisk, I think. They don't really seem to know exactly what it is, either. I've been gathering we were brought here in the middle of a messy situation.

[There hasn't been that much time to learn, but pieces are slowly starting to come together.]

But we haven't been able to figure out any commonalities between the people who were brought. Up there or down here - I've talked to other prisoners, too, and...there's kids down here. I have a hard time imagining any teenage girls are a huge threat to Thorne. I'm more of a threat, but I'm considered a success?

[That she and Lloyd both are free and welcomed...it means whatever 'threat' is posed isn't an obvious one.]

Luckily Lloyd and I are in the same room, so it's been pretty easy to coordinate. And he's been looking after me.

[jealousbitch]

They definitely don't like us asking a bunch of questions, that's for sure. Figure they're keeping us in the dark on purpose and makin' us feel welcome so we don't. Bet they didn't count on so many from one place showing up. Everybody I talked to doesn't know anybody else here.

[ Lloyd nudges Nadine's arm with his elbow in solidarity. ]

Don't need to make it sound like a chore, I'm more than happy to do it.