[IC] Nightmare in Paradise

[Noyuri]

Shayre turned around to look at Jane, hesitating for a moment before letting down the now entirely sucked dry moss. "I... I don't think they will be poisonous... I had a bit, not enough to kill me if it were poisonous... However I think I would at least feel a bit sick if they are. But I don't want to kill this group off by being careless..."

He grimaced realizing his words might have a bit of a disheartening effect on the girls. They needed morale more than anything if they wanted to get through this. Morale... And decisiveness. There was nothing he would gain from standing around wondering, twisting and turning. There wouldn't be a one good path, one direction to take, that would get them out of this place. There would be hundreds of paths, and both could just as easily kill them as safe them. The only thing that wouldn't work for sure was waiting, wondering, hesitating. They needed to move, get things done, go in one direction and stick to it.

He frowned as the thoughts followed eachother in his head. It seemed as if the words belonged in a certain rythm, a certain pitch. They sounded an awful lot like some kind of speech someone would give... He wondered whether he had been told this by someone before, or had it been in a movie? As he tried to remember it, or anything else, he felt the beginnings of a headache come up. It was starting to get familiar now... Not that a familiar pain is much better than a foreign one. He turned his attention away from the subject by concentrating on the problem at hand. Whoever had come up with that speech, if it hadn't just been himself, they had been right.

Making a decision, he nodded and stood up straight. "We won't know for sure whether they are poisonous or not. I suggest we go to sleep now, and if the fruits haven't made me sick until tomorrow morning, we have to assume they are safe to eat.

He looked over at the girls, hesitating for a moment. "That is, if you guys can keep up another night."

Shayre frowned at himself, wondering whether he was taking too much authority, or too little. He wasn't really sure whether he wanted to lead them, be responsible for failures... Then again, he wasn't sure who else would do it. The new girl seemed to think about things, but he didn't really know her yet... And she had been awfully ready to trade Jane's blood with that monster. Akuma had worked hard, but didn't come up with her own ideas, being content following orders. A good girl to have around, but no leadership material. Jane... He trusted her, and her leg was healed now, but it seemed like she had been here for quite some time now, and her powers had depleted quickly. It was good that she was drinking water, she was probably parched with thirst, and it was probably affecting her behavior.

You're one to talk, he chuckled as he felt his head. He walked away from the tree, ready to continue the effort of hauling the shelter towards the place he intended to have them sleep tonight.

[Briza]

"I hope the fruit is safe," Jane said to Akuma, hopefully. Just as she spoke aloud, Luna rushed to help Shayre with the shelter. She was more proactive than the other two with such a task. Jane watched as they carried the shelter. Not once had shelter really crossed her mind. She had slept in the wilderness here for. . Maybe two nights, three nights? And not once had shelter been an issue. The nights had seemed mediocre, and. . Maybe it was the shock of the scenario keeping her from moving, having more survival. It was true, she had been in a particular mindset during those three days, nights.

She had been tripping on acid just the twelve hours before all of this happened, or something like that. And here she was. .starving, and it dawned on her to help Luna and Shayre with the shelter. Recollecting how she had gotten here seemed too much of a daze. What happened? What really had happened to them all? Why were they here. . ? She snapped out of her daze.

"I, here, I can help, as well," she spoke, biting her lip, again, realizing how weak her voice sounded. She drew in a deep breath, trying not to mind. The more important scenario was: she did not want to be caught not helping. If she was not mistaken, Akuma had helped collect materials for the shelter while she was in feeble condition. Or was that what had happened? She was not very clear minded during that time period, and even now, her mind wandered and scratched at itself.

She walked over to Luna and Shayre to help carry the shelter, "You really should not be lifting heavy objects with your head injury," she spoke, again to Shayre, concerned about him. He had helped her when her leg was maimed, and watching him strain was not a sight Jane thought she should allow. Her hunger was striking, but she could still walk.

[Noyuri]

Shayre nodded at Luna as she positioned herself at the oposite side of the shelter, ready to lift it up. "One... Two... And three!" He bit his tongue when a small sound escaped his lips, as the shelter was heavier than he had thought, and the effort it cost him to lift it didn't agree too well with his wound.

In fact, it disagreed loudly and aggressively inside his head, hammering against his skull and brains to prove its point. He blinked a few times, returning his face to a more natural expression. He could do this, he wasn't weak... He could protect the girls, take care of their survival needs, get them out of here... He had to.

Through the haze he barely noticed Jane coming closer, her hands ready to help carry the shelter. He moved to the side a bit, allowing her to grab one of the central beams of the structure.
"You really should not be lofting heavy objects with your head injury..." Her voice sounded concerned, and took away all hope he had had of them not noticing. He sighed and stood still for a moment, not willing to let go and prove her right... But it made sense. There was nothing to be gained from being headstrong, they had already noticed he was weak... If he had any brains left in his head he should let Jane take over and get to do something else.

Fire...

They needed a fire for the night, to keep away wild animals. It was an important task, one that wouldnt make him lose the girls' trust... He knew he was talking to himself as if he were a small child, who needed to be convinced to do some menial task, but that didn't make the words any less convincing.

He managed a warm smile at Jane before nodding at Luna to warn her he would be lowering the shelter again. As he turned around, making sure to stand straight, he looked over his shoulder. "Great, if you guys can move the shelter... Maybe Akuma can help... Anyway I'll be working on getting us a fire started."

[Briza]

Jane took hold of the shelter. It was heavier than she had expected. But what else should she have expected? She drew in deep breaths as her feeble body moved the shelter, trying to stay in stride with Luna, who seemed to have much firmer and swifter energy than her. The weight of the shelter stretched her muscles into an uncomfortable position, but oddly enough the weight was keeping her mind from her stomach's aches. She found some strange comfort in the heave of moving the shelter despite her exasperated figure, which had lost at least ten pounds if not more in the course of her appearing in this nightmarish land.

Shayre mentioned something about a fire. Jane could not help but agree with him. Her mind was in compliance with him. He had helped her this far, and holding the shelter was forcing her body into making depictions and decisions without much contemplation. Jane was not sure if a fire was really necessary, but Shayre's mood deemed a logical statement for the need of the element.

She bit her lip, as Luna commanded in numbers, "One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four," trying to keep Jane in rhythm with her. "Do you think this is a good spot for the shelter, Shayre?" Luna asked, her heart ringing through her voice. She had so much heart and love. Jane wished she could be so cheery, but her stomach's pinches were a reminder that being so. . so merry was not at all on the agenda, at least, not until the fruit was 'cleared' by Shayre's body. So far, he seemed functional. He was able to pick up the shelter without much noticeable hesitation, and his thinking seemed clearer than hers even though his head was injured.

Jane felt weak, bringing her mind back to her stomach. Her mind started dancing, and black spots started forming over her eyes, like dancing shadows sprinkling and taunting with rays of lights into her vision. Was she okay? Luna suddenly let out a holler as the shelter was dropped out of her hands, scraping against them as the weight was too much for her. Jane had passed out from exhaustion. And God, it felt so good to let her body morph into the atmosphere and fall through the low sky onto the ground. God, the feeling was so ecstatic, like she wasn't sober. God, I love you, she thought to herself as her body sprawled onto the grass. The soft, soft grass.

[Noyuri]

Shayre breathed out as he bend over to get another piece of dry wood, his right arm struggling to keep all the branches and pieces of bark from falling. He eyed the pile of wood next to the tree. Together with the wood in his arms, he thought he had enough to keep a fire going for the night, but he decided to get a bit more just to be sure. He would rather have too much than having to go out in the night to get more...
He shifted the weight of the wood on his arm, feeling it scratch in his skin as it slid back to its original position. Whatever, be stubborn, he thought to himself, hardly keeping himself from saying it out loud. If I start talking to branches it will be the end... He grinned as he straightened his back and headed back to the pile to drop off his heavy load.

Talking about the fruits had made him wary of his body, and he noticed he was constantly checking himself for signs of poisoning. Was that the beginning of a stomachache? Was he feeling sick, or just hungry? Was it really normal to start heaving after so little physical exercise? He shook his head and let the branches fall on the ground next to the pile. He was turning himself crazy. There was absolutely nothing wrong with him, at least not beyond the obvious head wound and hunger.

A voice came from some ways behind him, ringing brightly through the air. He turned around to see the girls slowly carrying the shelter his way. "Do you think this is a good spot for the shelter, Shayre?" The new girl looked at him with her head to the side. She seemed to think this was some kind of field trip, and her voice was full with childlike enthusiasm. Shayre wondered for a while, looking at the tree. "Maybe a bit closer to the tree, so the canopy can deal with most of the water, I doubt our shelter will be completely waterproof..."

He smiled at the girl before kneeling down next to the pile. Her presence alone lifted spirits, and while he didn't share her apparent enthusiasm, he knew they needed someone around to keep up their morale. After fooling around for a while, trying to come up with a good design for a firestarter, he looked up at the girls, hoping one of them knew how to do it. As he lifted his head, he was just in time to see Jane fall, her eyes rolling up as she hit the floor.

"Fuck!"
He jumped on his feet, rushing forward at the girl. "Jane? Come on girl, stay with us!" He shook her by her shoulder to try and wake her up. Her body was limp in his arms, and for a second he thought she could be dead. Panic rushed through his body, and his heart seemed to miss every other beat as he leaned forward. Inspecting her closer, he realized she was still breathing.

Looking around, he realized something had to be done. She might not be dead, but standing still and celebrating that would not really help her either. He stood up and looked over at the girls. "Luna? I guess the shelter is fine where it is right now, try and get a fire started somewhat close to it, but not too close so it won't set it on fire." His voice sounded rather calm, at least a whole lot calmer than he felt. He just hoped Luna would know what to do. She seemed to have a basic understanding of how things worked... Maybe she had been a scout before.

"Akuma, help me get Jane underneath the shelter, then I want you to gather moss and leaves for bedding okay? First we'll get one for Jane, then it's our turn."

[Briza]

Jane could still still feel the wind blowing through her hair as Shayre shook her dazed body back-and-forth, commanding her to stay with them. She wanted to smile to let him know she was feeling just fine, but her lips did not move, and she was oddly and strangely fine with her lips not moving to her will's desire. Everything felt so good in this state. She wished everyone could just -- just lie down in the grass and let its fingers massage their aching bodies as the wind marched melodies through their ears.

"Luna? I guess the shelter is fine where it is right now, try and get a fire started somewhat close so it won't set it on fire."

"You got it!" Luna jumped on top of the task of making fire. Her father had taught her well. He took her camping every season. Luna felt at home in the wild because of this. Making fire would be tedious and take some time; she was not as good at making fire as her father, but that did not mean she would fail at providing the element. She trotted over to the wood that Shayre had carried from the forest and began setting up a site.

"Akuma, help me get Jane underneath the shelter, then I want you to gather moss and leaves for bedding okay? First we'll get one for Jane, then it's our turn."

Akuma nodded silently, worried about poor Jane, lying lifelessly like some rag doll in Shayre's arms. She quickly made her way to Shayre's side, trying to smile at Jane, to give some comfort to the given situation.

"I'll grab her legs, Shayre," Akuma said, taking hold of Jane's limp, dirty legs. They were heavy for her, but she knew with someone else's help -- Shayre's help she could manage, "It's like one thing after another," she puttered from her petite mouth, letting out a small breath. Her golden, blonde hair, brushed against her rosy cheeks as she spoke, grasping hold of Jane's legs at the same time.

Jane barely opened her eyes as the two were holding her. A glazed look overcast them. A small quiver perked through her lips; she wanted to tell them she was fine and did not need so much attention, or so many hands touching her. But all she could do was close her eyes, again and take in small breaths of air through her slightly parted lips.