[hider=Hannie/Kaitlyn Collab] [b]Hannie is not on the battlefield and not at the auditorium, which means she's lost. There are a few obvious ways to track her: finding and asking the few soldiers who've seen her leave, asking Qingshe, or correctly guessing that Hannie would be going exactly away from where the fighting is.[/b] [h3]Kaitlyn Price[/h3] Kaitlyn had assumed Hannie would be at the Auditorium - the one 'safe' place she could think of in this God forsaken place. And she wasn't there. To say this news threw her into a panic was an understatement. She was practically pulling her hair out, asking every poor soul she came across if they'd seen a little girl. It should have been easy, how many little girls would be out and about during this chaos? Not to mention, the entire area had become a semi-militant zone, so it's not like there'd be many of those just walking around. By the time she'd found her, she'd already run half a dozen horrific scenarios through her mind. [color=0072bc]"Hannie?" [I]She's alive. Thank God, she's alive! The one good thing in this city is still alive![/i][/color] Standing a short distance away from the tiny Arms Master would be Kaitlyn Price, the most sorry looking girl to ever disgrace the face of the earth. Dried tear streaks stained her cheeks, and detritus from the battle with the Chinese still covered her. She hadn't exactly taken the time to collect herself since... All of this. [h3]Hannie Cavalet[/h3] Kaitlyn's position as most sorry-looking girl ever is heavily contested. Hannie has had a Day. She's sitting upright in the middle of the street, but she slouches deeply, and it looks like a firm wind would be enough to fold her. She's wearing one of Qingshe's protection outfits, and what can be seen of her face is far out of it. Her eyes take a few seconds to climb up to Kaitlyn. She takes her in for another few seconds. She lets out a long breath, echoing in her helmet. "hhhhhI don't know how to get this off," she says. Her voice is scratchy. [h3]Kaitlyn Price[/h3] Tears threatened to resurface, and she wasn't sure why. Instead of bursting into frantic tears, or finally just collapsing... She sniffles, wipes her nose, and calmly closes the distance between them. [color=0072bc]"Here,"[/color] she says quietly, kneeling down next to her. [color=0072bc]"Let me help you out of that."[/color] And that's exactly what she does, if allowed. She can't think of anything to say, so she just... Doesn't. [h3]Hannie Cavalet[/h3] In the fashion of its designer, the unsealing mechanism seems like it must be awfully complex on the backend, but is easy to operate. A few latches and levers stand in the way of getting the helmet off, and the whole suit loosens and deflates with quiet hisses all over. Was it pressurized? Like... spaceworthy? Whatever it was, now it looks suspiciously like a discarded snakeskin. Hannie starts to scoot out of it with some difficulty, only because she can barely muster the strength to move herself, before Kaitlyn inevitably helps her out of this too, pulling her free and to her feet. Hannie doesn't let go once she's out. She leans heavily on Kaitlyn and says nothing. [h3]Kaitlyn Price[/h3] Kaitlyn holds her, and just... Breathes. [color=0072bc][I]She's safe. She's okay. We're both okay...[/i] "... Whenever you're ready." [I]Whenever you're ready, we can talk, or go, or whatever. I'm here for you.[/i][/color] [h3]Hannie Cavalet[/h3] Minutes pass. Hannie's breathing matches to Kaitlyn's. It's beginning to look like she's going to try falling asleep standing up when she finally speaks again. "It's over?" She doesn't look now, opting instead to keep her face buried in Kaitlyn, but she saw the volcano collapse. Anyone's guess why there was a volcano to begin with - or a second sun - or a war - but there had sure been one, and now there's not. Well. Maybe there's still a war. Just, not here. Not now. Please? [h3]Kaitlyn Price[/h3] [color=0072bc]"It's over,"[/color] she whispers. She shudders. [I][color=0072bc]I took a life today. Several.[/color][/i] She'd watched people swallowed into the ground. The gravity Arms Master was probably dead, and Ari... [color=0072bc]"It's over,"[/color] she repeats, mostly just to reassure herself. The tears come anyway. [h3]Hannie Cavalet[/h3] Hannie feels Kaitlyn shaking and looks up. Watching her cry feels... bad. Should she cry too? She doesn't feel like she can anymore. "'s okay," she mumbles, still scratchy-voiced. Thirsty, she realizes. Funny how that happens after fighting for her life, being shot twice, and maintaining a Noble Arm that kills her for about an hour and a half. "It's over," she says, again. [h3]Kaitlyn Price[/h3] she just nods. Get yourself together, Kaitlyn! Don't do this. Not in front of her. [color=0072bc]"I'm sorry,"[/color] she sobs, unsure of who was leaning on who now. [I][color=0072bc]I'm sorry I couldn't protect you from this. You're just a child...[/color][/i] But she couldn't say it. She couldn't say anything for a good while, just pouring her soul out on a girl she barely even knows. By the time she was done, she barely felt like she could even stand up. She felt hollow, and so... So tired. [I][color=0072bc]Get up.[/color][/i] Sighing, she gets up, wiping off her face. [I][color=0072bc]What a pathetic mess you are.[/color][/i] Yeah, maybe Kaity is a mess, but that's no excuse to fall apart right in front of Hannie. Taking a moment longer to collect herself, she offers Hannie a smile that would make Spock raise a brow, and extends her hand. [color=0072bc]"Come on, let's get you back and under some covers... Unless you need me to carry you?"[/color] God knows I could use some carrying right about now. [h3]Hannie Cavalet[/h3] Hannie turns to look the way Kaitlyn came from. The road looks daunting now. Kaitlyn, even though she doesn't act like it, doesn't look like she can take much more than a few steps supporting herself. [color=6ecff6][i]Child...[/i][/color] Hannie sighs. She forms her hand to hold its grip. She tries to reach for that thing inside her. She feels its texture... the beginning of its chill... but not its weight. And then it's gone. She has nothing left. Fine. "We can walk together," she croaks. [h3]Kaitlyn Price[/h3] she nods, again, unable to really summon up a stronger response. And then they're on their way. Kaitlyn sways, occasionally, as the adrenaline that fueled her search rapidly wears off. She was exhausted. But she forced herself to keep going, one foot in front of the other. A few minutes in... Or steps... However long- she gets a little lost. [color=0072bc]"Which... Which way is the Auditorium?"[/color] She slumps down onto her knees. [I][color=0072bc]Get up.[/color][/i] She can't get up. [I][color=0072bc]You need to get up.[/color][/i] [color=0072bc]"I'm sorry... Hannie... I need to take a short rest."[/color] [h3]Hannie Cavalet[/h3] Hannie keeps going another few steps before the tug of Kaitlyn's hand stops her. She turns, and sees Kaitlyn on her knees. She looks back to the empty streets ahead, little different from when they started moving. She... shouldn't stop. She lightly bites her lip, forming her hand for the grip again. She reaches for it... and can't even find it this time. She feels it whisper, but it's so far away - like it was before today, before it ever spoke. She turns to Kaitlyn again, and goes to kneel down beside her. She digs into her pockets and pulls out some of the candy. She'd bought way too much, and Hannie wanted to give some back from the start. "Okay. Let's rest. Want some?" [h3]Kaitlyn Price[/h3] Kaitlyn smiles weakly and accepts one, but just kind of... Holds onto it. She'd probably choke on anything she put in her mouth right now. [I][color=0072bc]She bought all of this junk food with that allowance I gave her.[/color][/i] The thought makes her giggle, and she reaches out to wrap her arms around the little girl. [color=0072bc]"Thank you..."[/color] She ends up dragging both of them to the ground, curling up around her as the exhaustion really settles in. She can't even keep her eyes open anymore. ... [h3]Hannie Cavalet[/h3] "Mmh..." Hannie blinks, then the surge of warmth from being wrapped entirely hits her hard. Her eyes... open... and then close again. ... [h3]9/25/2022, 18:41 UTC+8[/h3] "That's, uh... miss Cavalet, I think. C-rank." "One of the masters? What's she doing all the way out here?" "Blocking the road." "...buddy. Are they even alive?" "Sure, I can hear the girl trying to breathe from here. Maybe I can write up the private for crushing her." "Put your MP-brain to bed just for a sec, please. I'm gonna try and wake 'em up." "Be gentle. Don't wanna spook an arms master." [h3]Hannie Cavalet[/h3] [i]...Hannie? Is that her name? Hannie Cavalet, right. Hannie? Can you hear me? Anybody home here?[/i] Unhappily, she opens her eyes again, and meets a strange young man's toothy grin. [i]"Theeere you are. What's up? You two alright?"[/i] She shifts and looks over at Kaitlyn, still covering her, more like an inordinately heavy blanket than a conscious human being for the moment. "...sleepy." The young man leans over to look at the front of Kaitlyn's uniform. [i]"Price? Private Price? Can you run that for me, she's more likely to listen to her first name."[/i] "...don' wake her up." [i][b]"Oh, that's Kaitlyn, then. She goes by Kait sometimes."[/b][/i] [i]"Kait, you awake too?"[/i] [h3]Kaitlyn Price[/h3] 'Kait' is out like a fuckin light. There's a little bit of drool, even. She doesn't so much as stir. [h3]Hannie Cavalet[/h3] [i][b]"That's a negative. Could be that I'm getting her mixed up with Kate. You tried Kaitlyn, right?"[/b][/i] [i]"Forget it. Hannie, you two can't just lay in the road like this, so we're gonna pick you up. We're headed to the auditorium. Is that where you were going?"[/i] Hannie just shuts her eyes again... ...[/hider]