funnygirl | 006 | Action/Voice

[Belle woke up early in the morning feeling a sudden wave of home sickness she hadn't felt in months. But it wasn't Beast's castle that she longed for, but the small cottage she had lived in with her father and their small assortment of animals.

It's this feeling that brings her to the stables. She's only been here a handful of times since arriving to accustom herself with the horses and to take one out for the occasional ride. Things have been so busy she hadn't been able to come by recently.

She spends most of the morning feeding the horses treats and keeping them company. Eventually she gets one saddled and goes for a ride through the forest, though she's careful not to ride out too far from the village. People may catch her during her ride, or they may come upon her while she's at the stables before or after her ride.]

[After she finishes brushing down the horse she took out for a ride, she decides to sit down and pull out her journal. She has a question she would like to ask the village.]

Good afternoon, Luceti. I should also welcome all of the New Feathers who have arrived. My name is Belle. I have a question I would like to ask everyone, out of mere curiosity, nothing more. So no one should feel pressured to answer. But how many of you had animals you cared for back home? Or do you have any here in Luceti? And if neither of these, what kind of animals are your favorite?

As for myself, I grew up caring for my horse, Philippe. I suppose that's why I feel so comfortable around horses. I miss him every day...[She pauses for a moment before continuing, sounding more upbeat.]

Well, I'm curious to hear everyone's answers.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Near your window? Your house must have been right next to the ocean.

It must have been wonderful to get to see them so close. I've never been to the ocean myself.

It was beneath it, actually. And it was hardly a house.

I've only ever seen it from the underside, but supposedly its an amazing thing to see from a beach.

You lived...underwater? [She sounds amazed.] How were you able to do that?

Yes, I've heard that to.

I...don't really know. They built the city before I was...born...I...

[She hesitates, and there's a faint, unhappy, uncomfortable sound from her, almost a whimper, before she's back. Having memories that aren't yours pop into your head is not a pleasant experience.]

I...imagine they used a lot of pressures and...prebuilt sections lowered from cargo ships, then constructed the buildings once the domes were finished...I'm not sure why I know that..

[The sound is faint, but Belle hears and it makes her worried that she asked more than she should have.]

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ask so many questions. The idea of people living underwater is just so strange to me.

No, I don't mind. [It was true, she didn't.] Being underwater was frankly the only good thing about Rapture. In that respect it was absolutely brilliant.

[She sort of missed that part.]

Rapture? Is that what it's called?

I should like to see an underwater city one day. It would be quite a sight, I'm sure.

Yes. I remember when I was very young, and everything hadn't gone to hell yet, Rapture was something of a wonder. It was still a city, many problems, but it was beautiful.

I don't mean to pry, but...it sounds like something terrible has happened to it.

Many things happened to it, and almost all of them were terrible. There was a civil war that everyone lost, a drug...craze that drove most everyone quite mad, and finally mother took over and turned it into something...bleak.

I was in the process of leaving when I came here, for what I imagine are obvious reasons.

Oh...my. I guess in your case, coming here couldn't have come at a better time. Although it might not be much of an improvement, depending on how you look at things.

Actually, I can't imagine a worse time. Father and I and my sisters were escaping. Everyone keeps insisting that time doesn't move back there while I'm here but...if they're wrong, and it's very hard to believe they're not...

Then my family is probably dead now.

[She doesn't mean to be so depressing, Belle. :( ]

I...I'm so very sorry. I know it's frustrating not having any proof. But...there are people who have gone home and come back. And they are never missing any time. They all return to the point in which they left.

Mmm. I suppose it hardly matters one way or another, I can't do anything about it.

[That's the worst part, and the frustration is obvious in her voice. She doesn't like a problem she can't at least TRY to solve.]

It does matter. You're worried for your family and that's understandable. I just don't think you should lose all hope.

Mm.

[She's not really sure what she should say to that.]

Have you been here long?

[The change in topic catches her off guard.]

Um...yes. About ten months I believe.

Have you ever gone back?

No. I have not.

[She sounds a little bit sadden by this.]

Mm. I apologize... I imagine that's something most people would rather not dwell on.

No, it's alright. It's true I try not to dwell on it. But that does not make my longing for home go away.

Sometimes it's good to talk about it.

That's what my mother would say. You can't achieve a necessary catharsis if you bottle things up inside.

[She sighs.]

Mother is a psychologist.

Psychologist? [She's heard that term somewhere before. Maybe in something she read....]

Oh! Those are the people who study the brain and people's actions, and emotions isn't that right?

Yes. Essentially. Mother took it to something of an unfortunate degree, but that was what she was trained to do, at least.

It sounds like she enjoyed it, at least.

[voice]

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