You laugh until you cry; you cry until you laugh

[sailorgenerous]

Who: Virgo musicians - Ghost Quest people and their friends
What: When eight musicians go missing, what happens to those left behind? What happens when those eight come back far worse for the wear?
When: Feb 1st-3rd and after
Where: Virgo HQ
Warnings: Talk of torture, violence, brainwashing, etc. It's ugly in here, folks.

The past three days have not been kind. The hauntings were odd, yes, but when your friends went missing without warning or a trace - well.

How have you been coping? Have you been coping?

And then they came back just as suddenly, and...it looks like your worries were not unfounded.

This isn't good, is it.

Comments

[sponsorigami]

Hey.

[ Ivan is in one of the lounges with some tea, a piece of paper, and a pencil before him. He hasn't written down much, and the writing looks to be attempts at lyrics. ]

I haven't seen you in a few days.

[ He's trying to play it casual, hiding his worry, but the more he sees how the others are, the hard it becomes. ]

[trn451]

[That gets a snort out of Parker.] The label kept us busy. Did you get the thing from where you needed it? [Not tremendously subtle, but it'll do; nobody seems to be around and Parker can't imagine the hallways of the HQ are bugged.]

[sponsorigami]

[ He picks up her meaning easily. ]

I did. It's not going to get lost, and I made backups too.

[trn451]

Okay. Okay, good. [Some tension drains out of Parker's shoulders.] You should probably try and get some copies to other people too.

How are you holding up? I saw you — get hurt. [Get attacked might not be subtle.]

[sponsorigami]

I'm doing all right. I'm more concerned about working with this song than any injuries I got from my clumsiness.

[ To give them a little more to work with than absolute vague language, Ivan opts to make the hidden knowledge sound like a song in progress.

As for the clumsiness... he was an absolute klutz until his power started to return. Him accidentally getting hurt is a lot more believable than him getting into a fight. ]

My band was really able to comb through it and offer input. It's developing into something beyond what we thought. But... looking at all the pieces we have so far, it makes a lot of sense. I plan having others from Virgo hear at the song. I just need to figure out who I trust to give honest critique.

[ Is this working for a code? Ivan doesn't know. It sounds far too obvious and suspect. ]

[trn451]

[Parker nods, working it out.] Start with those of us who were there, maybe, when you improvised that first demo. You can filter the list some if you don't think they can keep a secret — I'm definitely not going to tell.

Make sure at least somebody who wasn't there gets a copy, though, just so that you don't put all your eggs in one basket. Worst comes to worst, the stuff you put together will see the light of day at some point.

[sponsorigami]

Do you think... the people who were there would want to hear it so soon? It was a pretty bad rendition...

[ Parker seems to be the only person who seems to be... well, functional after all this. ]

[trn451]

That's why it needs work; you can't just—!

[Parker stops, and sighs. She is not by any means a large person, and in drawing her arms in to massage her temples, she seems almost to deflate.]

Sorry, I'm just — sorry. You're probably right, we should be careful about that. Don't want to alienate anybody who was there the first time.

[sponsorigami]

[ Ivan flinches when she raises her voice, and he's unsure what to do at first. However, when she sighs, he gives an exhale of his own. ]

I promise you that it won't get lost. I just... want to give them a chance to rest their ears... and avoid going deaf.

[trn451]

Yeah. Don't mind me, it's dumb, I'm just — the label makes me mad. [Parker doesn't meet Ivan's eyes, looking off to the side.] I always knew they were jerks, but...

[sponsorigami]

I knew companies could be fierce and competitive... That's part of business, but this... this...

[ Ivan's brainwashing reminds him that the label's actions are acceptable. The rules they place are just and should be followed. He signed up for this. But, is that right? No, he... didn't sign up for any of this. With the talk with his band, he knows that this isn't who he's supposed to be. ]

... Is this legal?

[trn451]

[Parker shrugs.] Laws are only as good as courts and police make them. If you find a great lawyer, hey, go for it, but...[She looks away.] I wouldn't count on it, is what I'm saying.

[sponsorigami]

No... I mean... if they're doing this and it's legal, then we can't...

[ Ivan shakes his head. No, it's too risky to say they can't look towards law enforcement, the people who are supposed to keep the peace and protect the citizens. And maybe Virgo has all the good lawyers. Either way, they're even more screwed if the law is on Virgo's side. ]

Not without outside... advice... counsel.

[trn451]

It'd be a hell of a sell. "Come fight one of the Big Two labels for nothing."

[Parker leans back on her heels, sucking in a breath.] I think we're mostly on our own, here.

[sponsorigami]

I mean... really outside...

[ He's not sure if she knows about the possible people coming from where they really belong, and he's not sure how to say it in the "code" they're talking in. ]

[trn451]

[That gets a raised eyebrow. Parker has met Daft Punk, even if she doesn't know about the rescuers they've recruited.] Brings us right back to the question of who we let hear about it. Even more so, this time; it'd be an intense play.

[sponsorigami]

I've... got a small idea of where to look, but I think my sister might pass it along for me.

[ She seems to have a best connection with the others out of the band right now. Luce might too, but Rei's freer. ]