002 ✽ Come back! Even as a shadow, even as a dream

[giglio_madonna]

Who: Everyone stuck in Virgo HQ
What: This happened, and now we're all stuck here.
When: Nov. 1 - 5
Where: Virgo HQ
Warnings: Honor system, I'm trusting everyone to put warning in the subject lines if it comes up in their threads!

So.

Press events? Not happening. Concerts? Cancelled. Going out at all? N o p e.

Everyone- well every newbie- is ball and chained to Virgo Entertainment's headquarters for the time being. What's the emergency? No one knows, but you're all stuck here regardless.

> What will you do?

Comments

[giglio_madonna]

Sounds perfect.

Have you talked with any of your bandmates about this yet?

[connivingbird]

We're doing projects by ourselves and maybe a couple collabs right now. Something's up since we haven't seen the two youngest for a couple days now.

[giglio_madonna]

Really? [Okay, no, that's not good.] Who's been missing?

[connivingbird]

Kaworu and Aoba. I haven't seen either of them since that stuff in the basement.

[And it worried him a little, especially when he was told to not worry about it. Something was strange because the manager's word had him stop panicking - at least on one level.]

It's weird that I'm not freaking out about it, you know?

[giglio_madonna]

Maybe...

[Luce rubs at her arms, worried. Maybe it's not the right thing to say... At the same time, it's some sort of answer.]

Ivan has been out recently too. Angel said that it's because he got sick. Perhaps they caught the same thing as he did?

[connivingbird]

Maybe...

[He trusts some people and that felt a little weird from time to time. Which was another weird feeling because why shouldn't he trust the manager knowing what he was doing and that the missing members of the band were just missing and not anything worse.

And yet...]

If they did catch something, they'll need a lot of explaining when they get back.

[giglio_madonna]

We can scold them together when they come back.

[Luce tries to laugh, just because thinking of alternatives is horrible.]

So do you think you have an idea of how to complete your song?

[connivingbird]

Definitely.

[Ankh tries to go along with it, even as he restarts the song to give it another listening to.]

I might have an idea.

[giglio_madonna]

Excellent.

[Getting some pastries she has set aside in her room, she sets them down by him.]

When you get some more figured out, I'd love to listen to the song with them. I could give you some feedback.

[connivingbird]

Thanks. I'll look forward to hearing any feedback on this.

[Because the idea was a bit outside of what was normal to the band as a whole. He took one of the treats and nibbles on it thoughtfully.]

Think you're gonna be let outta of jail soon?

[giglio_madonna]

Oh, this little house arrest?

[Luce laughs and waves the question off.]

I'll be fine. Angel is just being overly cautious. A few days where I show I'm not going to pull an Ivan, and she'll ease up.

[connivingbird]

Really? What did Ivan do? Try to kill himself?

[It was a random sounding question but Ankh was interested. There was something up with the way some of their band members disappeared or otherwise seemed to have special doctor sessions for no reason.]

[giglio_madonna]

Oh, no!

[Do not even joke, Ankh.]

No- he just got so sick, he's had to go get treatment... I suppose it's worrying enough to get past the lockdown.

[connivingbird]

[He has a bad habit of making light on things he shouldn't and it shows when he makes a face and rubbed his forehead.]

Sorry. It's not been a good time at all lately.

[But... his tattooed hand twitched, fingers curling in and somehow he was thinking of something else, some other memory Do you want him to die? He can't live much longer without me. and then it was gone.]

I don't trust these treatments people have been getting.

[giglio_madonna]

It's been... a bit uneasy, I agree. I can't get any word on what he's going through...

[Rubbing her hands over one another, Luce shakes her head. Positive. She has to think positive.]

But I'm sure the label wouldn't do anything to hurt any of its stars, not on purpose.

[connivingbird]

On purpose or not, I just don't trust it.

[He didn't like doctors. He wasn't fond of medicines either. To him, the whole mess seemed more like a scam then actually helping a person.]

It seemed to happen at a weird time.

[giglio_madonna]

A lot of weird things have been happening lately...

[There's a pause before she forges ahead.]

Have you noticed? Even before the job downstairs.

[connivingbird]

Like what? The way some people were acting during the awards ceremony?

[Ankh wasn't going to actually come out and say it. Not only was he getting more and more certain that there was something wrong going on, but he was just not sure if anyone would believe him. He saw something out of a horror movie or so he thought. He didn't need someone to get the wrong idea and try to scoop out his brains.]

I thought that was some party favors circulating or something.

[giglio_madonna]

[Another person who experienced something at the awards ceremony...]

I don't think there were any kind of party favors down in the basement.

[connivingbird]

No, there wasn't.

[He could tell her a few things, but that may not be a good idea. The dreams were the hardest thing to talk about and he just shifted slightly pouting at the floor.]

I don't think there was at the awards ceremony either.

[giglio_madonna]

[And that's the problem.]

What do an awards ceremony and an eerie basement have in common?

[connivingbird]

Us.

[No hesitation, though he does look at her out of the corners of his eyes. It might come out that something wasn't right but he couldn't say, not really.]

There is something about us that might be triggering this stuff.

[giglio_madonna]

Really? Well... I suppose you're not wrong.

[Maybe that's something to keep in mind...]

Musicians in general, do you think, or just those who joined around the same time?

[Because... That was a large surge of musicians during the summer, wasn't there?]

[connivingbird]

They do say artists are a bit high-strung and we're the newest bunch for the labels. I wouldn't be surprised if we're all creating a kinda negative energy from getting this famous this fast.

[And if Luce believed that, Ankh would eat his shirt.]

[giglio_madonna]

The only time I've been getting nervous has been this whole lockdown business.

[Although, for some of the younger artists, she doesn't doubt they are nervous... But there's obviously more to it than that.]

Nerves don't start off a chain reaction of unnatural experiences.