pc ♠ laurence

[fried]

wauh

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w0, MONDAY

[fried]

[ good morning, we are at the arcade!

it's fumkin noisy in here but he's doing his best! he seems to be doggedly playing one game in particular. it's a rhythm game, one of those taiko drum ones, and he seems like he's really concentrating, ears perked up and forward. is he perhaps trying to get a high score? maybe. it's not out of the question because he actually is doing pretty good, he's got near perfects on all of the notes. oh, also, he's wearing this.

in any case, he's very clearly not paying attention to anything around him so this is your chance to jumpscare the shit out of him if you'd like. ]

[outdistanced]

[ jiaoqiu is so professional... laurence is just a teen in a hoodie.

AND MAN I WISH HE WOULD JUMPSCARE but he gets so caught up in watching... look at jiaoqiu go... he stays quiet until the score pops up, then speaks up! ]

Wow. The profile said nothing about you being a musician.

[ he's impressed? ]

[fried]

[ oh that's a cute hoodie though wtf!!

it's okay, because laurence doesn't mean to jumpscare him but he absolutely does. jiaoqiu nearly throws the drumstick off to the side as he jumps, tail floofing. ]

Reignbow Arbiter -- [ in the cadence of jesus christ ] Where did you come from? How long have you been standing there?

week 1, saturday

[outdistanced]

[ it'll be a bit of time before he goes to find jiaoqiu. courage has never been necessary in the safety of the tower - not until recently, perhaps, and even then, fear and regret are the things that drove him most. heaven should have been different, and yet he still says things he shouldn't without stopping to think.

but laurence does eventually find him, hands shoved in his pockets, vines thick and tight around his neck. ]

Do you still want to talk...?

[ after this day?? he'll understand if jiaoqiu wants to hold off on it. he's still reeling a bit, himself. ]

[fried]

[ those vines concern him so bad, buddy!!

it's been rough, today, but jiaoqiu is okay. he's doing okay. his hair is white and he looks exhausted, but it's okay. ]

I would, if you'd like to. You can certainly take a break from me if you need to, though. [ a little teasing. ]

[outdistanced]

[ grandpa your gray hairs... laurence shakes his head. ]

No, it's... [ "okay" is the wrong word. ] I can talk. I don't really want to be alone after that, anyway.

w2, MONDAY

[fried]

[ you can find jiaoqiu in... the garden! the olive garden.

he's busy planting something... ]

[outdistanced]

[ there's a child peering around his side. ]

You're a gardener, mister? What are you planting?

[fried]

[ OUGHGH A BABY I SMOOSH ]

-- Ah. [ STARTLES. but it's fine. a beat, as he glances at this little face, and then he smiles, ear flicking. ] Hello there. I'm not a gardener, just a healer.

I'm planting chili peppers.

w3, monday

[outdistanced]

[ voids us into the fun house...

cw: child abuse for the memory that's reflected back at them today. ]

[fried]

[ well OKAY. jiaoqiu's immediate response is to look around for laurence, to see what's going on with him. he has thoughts, but it's more important that he makes sure laurence is okay. ]

[outdistanced]

[ laurence hasn't moved just yet, instead watching the memory replay before them with resignation. there's fear in his eyes as madam picks up the marker - resentment, too, maybe even a trace of anger.

but he forces himself to look away before she starts to draw this time, taking a deep breath. ]

w3, thursday

[outdistanced]

[ coming to check on you too once everyone's taken care of aaaaaaa how is he looking...... ]

Jiaoqiu...? Do you need anything?

[ he's not very helpful with like bandages and stuff but laurence could grab painkillers or snack for him if he wants... ]

[fried]

[ he is not great but he'll probably survive,

gives you a general wound overview: he has like, stab wounds everywhere. it's his shoulder, his legs, and in his stomach. they look like someone was trying to run him through with a sword with the shoulder and stomach, but the legs are more shallow, thinner. one of his arms is just absolutely useless - a gouge near the inner elbow/forearm, something that looks like it was made with some sort of sharp teeth. it's messy. there's also some sort of gouge-y bite wound on his shoulder, too.

he's got slash marks across his face, too. kind of claw like. and his left ear is ripped in half - it's missing the top half of it, so he's just got half an ear. it's all bandaged as much as it can be.

he startles at the voice, and looks over in his direction with a slightly alarmed look. it seems more like he's just spooked at the sound rather than it specifically being laurence, though. ]

What?

[outdistanced]

[ good lord. he holds his hands up, doesn't come any closer just yet because he doesn't want to spook jq any further. ]

Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you.

w4, MONDAY

[fried]

[ today, we are in the new tavern!

jiaoqiu is sitting at the counter, holding a wine glass and looking down at the drink. a general sense of melancholy settles in the air.

oh, also, he's way less injured today. his ear is still missing, but based on the way he's holding himself, he isn't in horrible pain. that's probably nice. ]

[outdistanced]

[ there's an air of curiosity around laurence as he takes in the new place, but... the melancholy. he looks at jiaoqiu with some concern, unsure whether to approach or not...

imagine if he didn't, pc over everybody go home - no of course he does. he'd be blind to miss how badly jiaoqiu's been taking things in the past few weeks. ]

Jiaoqiu...? Something on your mind?

w4, SATURDAY

[fried]

[ he does want to come check on him at some point, even though the entire game is probably trying, so... comes with food. something easy to eat, like apple slices or something. ]

[outdistanced]

[ jiaoqiu is so cute.

laurence is not. he's sitting in the gazebo where the vibes are unsurprisingly miserable. though by now the anger's faded, leaving only frustration, sorrow, and grief in its wake. he looks surprised, just for half a second, to see him here. ]

Jiaoqiu...?

[ eyes the snacks like ?? ]

w5, THURSDAY

[fried]

[ comes to visit laurence AFTER CYOA EXIT, WHAT IS GOING ON

hi. hello, he's bringing bandages and water and painkillers. ]

[outdistanced]

[ help me it's been such a week. laurence has changed out of the maid outfit but he's shirtless currently so he can just kinda... poke at his injuries with a frown... stop that. ]

Oh, Jiaoqiu. I forgot to pass on the message. It's from Zhongli.

[ he is, notably, still wearing a yellow ribbon on his wrist that was there when he first got back. ]

w6, MONDAY

[fried]

[ you can catch, towards the end of the day, a little dreamscape being projected from a sleepy not balded fox. he is unbalded, now, but he's dozing off somewhere close by, probably sitting up.

which means what you see is the following:

a long street, illuminated by gentle lights and a starry sky. a foxian woman walks down this street, being followed by two men flanking her at either side. one of them, a tall man in a hood, does not seem to be able to relax, glancing around them at all angles, as if seeking an invisible enemy. the other man, a familiar pink foxian, fans himself gently as they walk, not paying attention to their surroundings at all. the woman is chattering at the both of them in an animated fashion, throwing her hands around, throwing her head back and laughing, reaching back to slap at the men following her in a jovial way. the tall hooded man hides a smile, and jiaoqiu, because of course that's who it is, outright laughs when the foxian woman turns to walk backwards to speak to them more insistently.

it sounds like she's trying to convince them to try out a new takeout place. come on, we've been out all day, we deserve a treat. jiaoqiu reaches to rap her gently with his fan, saying something about the cost, and she complains loudly about money not being a problem - who would charge her, anyway?

the world around them doesn't change. it's just locked in a moment - locked in something familiar, like home. ]

[outdistanced]

[ he recognizes the foxians immediately. jiaoqiu, naturally - but also the woman, from that brief glimpse he risked during the very first execution here. would that make the other that coworker jiaoqiu had talked about?

he's almost worried to reach out, or say anything, for fear of disrupting the dream. it looks so peaceful, and a moment peace is so precious when friends die every week. especially for someone who seems to care so much about those around them. (especially for someone who so frantic about their recent curse.)

...ultimately, he does approach to gently touch jiaoqiu's shoulder. maybe he should sleep in a real bed. ]

Jiaoqiu?

w6 thursday

[outdistanced]

[ what a goddamn day!! he's going to come check on jiaoqiu eventually though aaaaaaa knocks quietly on his room door before poking his head in. ]

Doing any better...?

[fried]

[ well the answer is no he's not but he will try for poor laurence

anyway now, he's bandaged, but most noticeably he's covered in pretty severe electrical burns, there are bits of his skin that are like... split, along his arms. there's a stab wound that got bandaged. and also his eye is fucked up. it's severely damaged, if not gone entirely. he doesn't look up, but one ear perks. a beat. ]

Laurence? [ ... ] I... yes. A little.