Lost Inside Your Memory

NORA HASTINGS ❝ The creature lunged  I turned and ran To save a life I didn't have ❞

[tamyrawilliams]

@norasbolting and tamyra run into each other after their powers go wild and their lack of control causes some problems for them

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[norasbolting]

AURELIE​:

━━ ••●•• ━━

Aurélie manages to mirror the meager smile despite her own anxiousness. She suddenly gets the appeal of this girl, daring and quick and… well, a little familiar. “I have been under the impression for some time that so-called stupidity and courage go hand in hand.” Or so she had felt running toward conflict at Nora’s age, just as they’d both run into the jungle now. “I do.” That’s all there is to it – with their people in trouble, there’s no choice. They both had to go in. As had Joaquin – and Aurélie looks back toward the trees then as if he will shuffle through, flocked by the birds he had called to. He doesn’t.

Nora contradicts herself in one breath, her doubt of keeping track of things pushing up against her certainty that their friends (family) will be found. Aurélie doesn’t point out the contrast. “I suppose I should not be surprised, what with the castaways having been trapped in here for as long as they were…” Still, she sighs. “But this island rarely fails to surprise me.” Even now, after so many years. Perhaps even more so now, after so many more tranquil years.

As Nora speaks of vibrations, Aurélie nods, absently rubbing a hand against her sternum – it feels whole, and solid, and yet as if there is something hollow beneath. With a troubled furrow in her brow, she doesn’t acknowlege Nora’s questions, simply nods and follows along. It’s almost a relief, having someone else lead. Except – “What is that?” It almost feels like the rumbling of water colliding with the ground, and Aurélie feels a momentary flash of relief, thinking her attunement has returned. Just a momentary loss, that’s all… only that’s not it, and Aurélie realizes as much as she looks down to the ground, frowning as she watches pebbles dance against the dry earth. Quickly, she looks to Nora, the earth attuned. “Do you feel anything?”

⟻ ⭒♛⭒ ⟼

Nora didn't have many interactions with Aurélie since she arrived and she wasn't sure if something with such high stakes was a good start. It meant she had someone on her side at least, in here for the same reasons, looking out for the same people, wanting to make sure they were safe. As much as she wanted to keep up the pleasantries, Nora was getting antsy. Any moment not looking just meant another moment that could be deadly to those who had been dragged in here.

Her mind was racing after everything that was going on. Being chased by a beast with Teak and Madi certainly shook her up and now this sudden burst of power. She just wanted to keep moving forward, occasionally turning back to make sure Aurélie was still with her. "I don't know how they did it." She replied, still searching, looking around rapidly. "At first this place didn't see too bad, but some shit in here is out for blood. But that's even more reason to find the others." Nora could feel the ground shifting under her feet, causing dents in the ground without even much force. "Watch your step, I haven't been able to stop this kind of thing. I don't know what happened but be careful." Nora didn't want to be the cause of any injury while she had no control of her powers.

Whatever Aurélie was feeling, Nora could feel it more powerfully. Whatever it was, it was incredibly strong and she was both scared and excited at the same time. "I've never felt anything like this before. This is insane." She wasn't sure whether she should let Aurelie see the glint in her eyes but she continued on, perhaps in the direction where they'd find out what was causing the vibration.

[siamofiorimorti]

Catarina de Lurton scenes in Deus salve o rei episode 81

[thecryptkeeper]

i’m going to start saying “this is my design” everytime i fuck up at something

[thecryptkeeper]

*runs over the curb* this is my design

[newalphonsus]

@norasbolting

[norasbolting]

AURELIE​:

━━ ••●•• ━━

The girl cuts straight to the point, which Aurélie is glad for. Nora is new – it would be easy to be frightened and derailed by the current goings-on, especially at so young an age. But clearly the young woman has her wits about her. With a glimmer of newfound respect, Aurélie gives a quick nod. “That was very brave of you.” As if Aurélie herself isn’t also standing here – but she is older and it is certainly not her first trek into the jungle. (Maybe Nora’s newness is why she’d come in here so fearlessly.)

“Bien, very well,” she responds in the same businesslike tone as Nora dismisses her own needs. Is this what it’s like talking to her? Aurélie realizes. Always putting others first. Like she does now. “No, the vines did not take a liking to me. Not yet, anyway. I was standing on the farm and saw others get dragged in. There was no choice in the matter. I had sights on Tomas’ trail for some time, but I have lost it.” Among other things. Other people: Joaquin is among the trees somewhere. She quickly hopes he’s faring well – and then remembers something.

The way that Joaquin had called to the birds. Except – Aurélie turns back toward Nora hastily. “Tomas has told me that you are one of the earth attuned. Is this true?” And then, before the girl can really answer: “Do you feel anything? Any… movement in the dirt? Footsteps, perhaps?” Or the traitorous movement of the jungle, but Aurélie doesn’t add on that part. Positivity will help them. Right?

⟻ ⭒♛⭒ ⟼

There was a brief moment of awkwardness at the compliment of being brave to run in here like she did. To her, she wasn't really thinking of it like that. It was a heat of the moment thought once the screaming had subsided and she didn't see the ones she cared about. Even with her attempts to convince Piper to come with her and help the others Nora wasn't sure it was necessarily bravery that led her in here. "Thanks. Depending who you ask it was also probably very stupid of me." She told her, cracking a smile for a moment before her features returned to a more serious look. "I just need to make sure they're safe. You were close to them, you get it."

Aurelie had made the same move Nora did after all. It was good to know they had the same thought process but of course, how could she not run in after seeing someone she cared about getting dragged in? "I don't know how anyone can keep track of anything in here. I didn't expect it to feel like a huge winding path." The first time they entered the jungle didn't feel as treacherous as it did now. "I plan on finding him and Tam too. Whatever it takes, this place isn't taking them from me." Her voice was confident, hoping to give some kind of hope to the both of them while in here.

Nora nodded in response to her question, pointing down to her now bare feet. "Yeah, I've been feeling the vibrations in the ground but...I think there's a lot of people in here and if everyone is as confused in here as I am, it's making it difficult for me to pinpoint anything." That, along with her inexperience in all of this. She liked to avoid dealing with the vibrations in the ground as much as possible so now she needed to focus more closely which was hard when she was frantically considering the possibilities of what state she might find her friends in here. "I just need to keep moving, feeling their footsteps or not, I'll find them eventually right? You coming?" She asked, pointing behind her in the direction she was planning on heading next.

[norasbolting]

AURELIE​:

Date: April 23  Location: Les arbres Status: Closed with @norasbolting​

If Nora had different features, Aurélie might have missed her entirely. But as it is, she’s been keeping an eye out for a dark head of hair amongst the trees, no matter how hard that is among the shadows. And Tomas doesn’t tend to move as lithely and quickly as the figure she just spotted did, but still, Aurélie surges forward. 

Only to find a figure that isn’t Tomas at all. But she’d been living with him, hadn’t she, after the plane had crashed. Then reportedly living with Tamyra, then –

No, this isn’t the time for those particular details. For now, she grabs Nora’s shoulders. Not tightly. Just steadying. A bit demanding. “Nora,” she says with confidence, having seen the girl flitting around Tomas and Libby’s home enough. “Were you brought here by the vines? Or something else?” She hadn’t seen the girl get stolen away, but it’s certainly possible that she hadn’t seen all of the victims of this unfortunate day. “Are you well?”

⟻ ⭒♛⭒ ⟼

Entering the jungle the only thing on her mind was the two people she cared about most on this island. Neither Tomas nor Tamyra were anywhere to be found once the screams seemed to fade. It was unfair, Nora already had to deal with worrying about losing Tamyra after she disappeared when the fog lifted and when it came to Tomas well...if anything happened to him, she didn't think she'd be able to handle life here without him. For all she knew, they just immediately ran into the jungle as a way to save someone themselves but just in case that wasn't what happened, Nora wasn't going to sit and wait to see if they come back.

She wasn't sure what to expect while in here, maybe some more ghosts? That was a possibility but she wasn't focused at all on what could be after her now that she was in here. As she pushed through with one thing on her mind, she was startled when Aurelie popped out of the trees. Her eyes widened at the sudden grasp on her shoulder before realizing who it was taking hold of her.

Nora glanced over to Aurelie's hands as she grabs onto her shoulders before looking back at her. She sounded uneasy but it was hard not to be in a time like this. "Aurelie, hey, hi. No it wasn't vines I came looking for Tomas and Tamyra." she told her, sure that was something she would understand easily. From the time she had been here, it wasn't hard to see how close Aurelie was to both of them so maybe she didn't find who she was looking for just yet but she could be some great help. "I'm ok, so far at least. We don't need to worry about me." she answered, waving off the question. "I heard the shouting from the farm and I had to check to make sure Tomas and Tam weren't part of it. Are you in here looking for them too or did the vines drag you in too?"

[norasbolting]

Introduce yourself as your name's meaning (first, middle, last)!

“I am honor, child of the austere man. Do you know what the hell that means? Cause I sure don’t. Can’t say I’m honoring anyone that’s for sure.”

[norasbolting]

TAMYRA​:

— ⋆ ✯ ⋆ —

“Good thing I’m not dead then, yeah? Wouldn’t want to do anything you’re not a fan of,” Tamyra tried joking, though even to herself all of it felt like a weak attempt.

And then Nora made it clear that she loved living with Tamyra, which was yet another thing that hit her right in the chest. She didn’t think it would have turned out this well, Nora staying with her. They had a lot of similarities and talked a lot before the fucking fog fiasco, but still in Tamyra’s head she figured Nora thought of the entire situation as placeholder, which would have only gotten stronger once Tomas and her cleared the air and it was out there that once the extension on Tomas’ house was finished, she would be moving on. She thought Nora was thinking of it as temporary. And maybe it was the case, but it didn’t sound like the kind of temporary that Nora couldn’t wait to get out of.

Sometimes Tamyra was horrible at reading social interactions and situations, really.

She ducked her head for a moment before she looked up at Nora and patted the spot next to herself on the bed. “Come here.” She waited for Nora to sit down next to her, trying to collect her own thoughts while the woman did that. Tamyra herself wasn’t even sure what she was doing, but she linked their hands together.

“I never had a roommate before, you know. I lived with my parents when I was a kid, but once I moved out, I’ve been living alone. My friend moved off to London and didn’t really have any other friend I would have considered as a roommate, and with guys… let’s just say I’m not really the moving in type. And here I never stayed at anyone’s place, I got my own and nobody has shown up in the middle of the rain to ask for shelter before,” she nudged Nora, her voice teasing by the end of it. “What I’m trying to say is that I’m not really good at this thing. This whole roommate thing.” She wasn’t good at so many things, really, more and more things coming to the surface these days. “Especially not when shit is happening and it feels like I’m losing so much.” And it felt like that, like she was losing her life and herself all over again. Maybe it was overly dramatic and it wasn’t that bad, but Tamyra couldn’t help it.

She did pull her arm away, though, when Nora started insisting her scar wasn’t that bad. “Don’t do that, you don’t have to do that. You don’t have to play nice or say it isn’t so bad, just– I just don’t want to talk about it. Don’t want to acknowledge it as much as it’s humanly possible. I’m sure the people on the island will spend enough time looking at it and asking about it already, I just– I’m already not sure how I will get through that. I don’t want the pity ‘it isn’t so bad’ speeches.”

Nora wanted well, but her words made Tamyra turn into herself stronger and she looked down into her lap, playing with her fingers as she listened to Nora talk about what happened from her side of the conversation between them. Between them and not at the same time. It sounded like what she thought Helen was telling her was all coming from Nora - it was kind of creepy to think about the fact that it fit perfectly, how easily it could have all came from Helen herself.

“Yeah, that is what my ex was telling me, kind of, so I think I heard what you were saying, it just seemed like I was talking to– my ex and not you.” Fuck, she almost said she was talking to her, her heartbeat sped up from the almost slip up. While weirdly, another side of her reminded her that there was no public opinion she had to worry about anymore. That maybe others knowing wouldn’t be the worst thing. Maybe.

“Honestly, I was really shitty to this ex of mine, so I was trying to apologize, so what came from you sounds– I don’t know what you heard me say, what your ex said, but from my side it sounds like I was talking to you and maybe you were talking to me.” She carefully looked over to Nora. “Have you been afraid that he was around the island somewhere, and you could run into him again any time?”

⟻ ⭒♛⭒ ⟼

Nora rolled her eyes though it was a bit more lighthearted rather than out of annoyance. "Such an honor coming from the great Tamyra Williams." She replied with a smile.

The offer to come sit next to her was unexpected, Nora was ready to make a joke about now, finally, she was allowed to share the bed with her even to just have a seat. She kept it to herself though, as she sat herself down next to Tamyra. It was such a new form of affection that she had never experienced from Tamyra before, the way she took her hand and let their fingers lock together. It reminded Nora of the way she held onto Tomas' hand when he came to find her and make amends, and as nice of a feeling that was, she wasn't about to start getting emotional again.

Not that Tam was making it any easier for her with the way she went on about never having a roommate before and not being very good at this. It was a whole new side of Tamyra that Nora had never seen before. Being vulnerable enough to admit that there were things she wasn't good at and this was one of them. "I never thought I'd see the day where I'd find out you were bad at something." She joked back, glad that they could at least do that. "Having roommates is hard. I spent a lot of my life with roomies, sometimes they're pains in the ass, but sometimes they're worth having around and it's something you get better at handling with experience. The only difference is that I'm an awesome roommate so you'll get the hang of it with me."

When Tamyra pulled away from her, Nora let out a sigh as she began going on about how her words were out of pity and was just to play nice. As much as Nora wanted to make her feel better about it, she wasn't intending this compliment to come across as her taking pity on Tamyra. She guessed that even if that wasn't her intention that was just how Tamyra was going to see it no matter who said it to her. "Alright, I'm not gonna acknowledge it, but I'm just gonna tell you that I don't say things out of pity. Whatever happened could have been a lot fucking worse and I'm just giving you my honest opinion. But I'll drop it now."

Nora nodded when Tamyra said that she had been trying to apologize, which was exactly what Nate was doing with her. They really were having the same conversation just on each end of the spectrum. It made her wonder why she would believe that Nate would even want to apologize to her in the first place. An apology from him came so out of left field but maybe it was better that it was actually Tamyra apologizing to someone else she had wronged. There was no way Nate was somewhere out there regretting what he did, wanting to make amends. "Yeah, he was apologizing but...I didn't want to accept it, I just wanted him gone. But he-well, I guess you said that you were trying to change and were hoping for forgiveness one day and I assumed he'd be around waiting for me to cool off.” That was her biggest concern, that she would have to face him again, constantly begging for her forgiveness or proving himself and that she may go back to him if he wore her down enough. 

“After a little while and after talking to others I got the idea that I may have just been seeing things and you were the only person I could think of to show up here. Honestly, this is the best case scenario. I don’t know what you may have done to piss your ex off but, I don’t think it was as bad as what happened between us so...I’m sorry that you thought my outbursts about him were directed at you. The fog definitely fucked things up."

[norasbolting]

[norasbolting]

TAMYRA​:

— ⋆ ✯ ⋆ —

Ten minutes. She had ten minutes to not think about what happened, and then Nora would be hounding her for information. Tamyra already felt shit about having to recount it, wondering just how many times she would have to do that in the following days to other people, and she already hated it. But Nora wasn’t pushing, Tamyra was the one who asked for ten minutes and she was giving her that space, so she couldn’t even really say anything. She was getting what she wanted, right?

(This was the last of what she wanted, really, bu the scar was already there, there was nothing to do about that, and there was certainly nothing to do about everyone’s reactions either. This is what she expected, really, people wanting to know. The fact that there was a big dose of worry and care mixed in with the curiosity for Nora was actually nice.)

She really did appreciate Nora being worried about her, if the situation would have been reversed, Tamyra would have worried too, and still when Nora snapped at her, she couldn’t help but snap back, “You know, maybe it’s not something you needed after the fog and that night, but I needed to get away from things, alright? I apologize if it wasn’t to your liking, but once I got back from the jag, I didn’t really have time to check in with people before shit gotten down, evidence of which you’re so readily staring at on my face, and after that I was a bit more preoccupied by getting myself fucking together, Nora. I’m sorry you weren’t the first thought I had in my mind, but I kind of had bigger issues to deal with.”

Tamyra wasn’t being fair, Nora hasn’t really been here long enough to really see what Tamyra was like after a failed attempt, how she needed time away from people to recouperate, and the boat certainly felt like a failiure, the worst of the kind, and then on top of that, once she was ready to get back in action, she disappeared again because of the accident. This was Tamyra staying away a lot longer than she usually did, of course people in her life like Nora would worry. She was just so wrapped up in her misery that she didn’t think that far.

She let out a long sigh and ducked her head, rubbing her forehead and trying not to touch her face and her scar at all. “I’m sorry. I really am sorry for worrying you, but this is hard enough as it is for me, Nora. All I still want to do is run out of here, find a comfortable cave on the jag and not show my face for the foreseeable future.” The urge of that was so strong during the walk back home, the only reason she didn’t was because she knew she’d have to face people eventually. Unless she followed Nora’s lead and jumped off a cliff, which wasn’t her goal at all, she would have to talk to people and let people see her eventually. Didn’t make it any less hard, though.

“I’m glad to hear things have been going alright for you, though.” At least one of them weren’t wallowing in complete misery. She looked up at Nora curiously, when she brought up the night of the fog and getting home. From the little she gathered from the few people she talked to while she was at Aurélie’s and her experience in the fog, some of it at least had to be fake and hallucination. She did wonder whom she talked to when she got back home, if it was Nora or if somebody stumbled into their place to find a respite.

“Yeah, I got back here for a moment before I swam out to the jag. I haven’t talked to you, I just talked to– an old ex.” Helen felt more than simply an old ex, she wasn’t even sure if she could call her an ex, considering how short lived anything was, but at least that wasn’t as revealing as it could potentially sound like. “I’m guessing I was talking to you instead?” Her heart was beating out of her chest just talking about Helen, afraid she’d slip some information, while other part of her hoped that this would last as long as it possibly could. The longer they talked about this, the longer she didn’t have to talk about what happened to her face.

⟻ ⭒♛⭒ ⟼

Maybe Nora didn't have to be the first thought in Tamyra's mind but it would have been nice if she was even a thought. Perhaps that was selfish to think that maybe Tamyra would consider her for a moment between everything going on even if she only wanted her feelings to be thought about briefly. She was giving Tamyra the time to talk about anything else which was why it was difficult for her to grasp the severity of the situation. The scar should have been a dead giveaway about how bad things were but after getting the chance to look at it for a bit longer, Nora couldn't say it was as bad as her initial shock made it seem.

The whole outburst made Nora want to argue back, give Tamyra shit for being so self-centered and not even daring to think about how the people who cared about her were feeling. Not even just herself but Tomas as well. Before she could pent up her aggravation at the situation and retort however, Tamyra sighed and apologized. It sounded genuine and it reminded Nora that Tamyra was going through a lot right now and that she shouldn't be too harsh on her. So she followed suit and took a deep breath of her own and took on a softer tone. "I'm sorry too, I'm just not a huge fan of my friends being dead. And I don't want you thinking I was glad you were gone. If I wanted alone time I would have made my own shelter instead of staying with you or Tomas." Disregard the fact that her ability to make her own shelter was lacking, having the company of Tomas or Tamyra was better than getting alone time.

"And just so you know, the scar isn't as bad as you think. Like, yeah first reaction is pretty bad but once that initial shock is gone it's not horrendous to look at." She tried to reassure her, since that must have been Tamyra's whole reason for staying hidden. Nora knew how much Tam valued her image, her beauty and a nasty scar would definitely cause a lot of stress for her.

Tamyra admitting that she came back to the hut before disappearing easily confirmed Nora's suspicions and in a way, relaxed her a bit. Had it not been Tamyra, Nora wasn't sure who she was speaking to besides Nate himself and now she didn't have to worry about him hiding somewhere on the island waiting for her to forgive him. "Yeah...it was me but I didn't think I was talking to you either." It was interesting that both of them seemed to be talking to an ex while talking to one another but Nora had no idea how much of their conversation was actually their own words. How much did the island twist things around for them? "I also saw my ex. I just wanted to make sure it was really you and not him because he was saying a bunch of stuff that made me worry that he was here and he wasn't leaving. Do you remember what you were saying to your ex? Cause I was giving mine shit, telling him to fuck off and just some pretty nasty stuff which...if I was talking to you may have been way out of line."

[norasbolting]

          What Makes Nora Difficult to Get Along With

[norasbolting]

TAMYRA​:

— ⋆ ✯ ⋆ —

So no time pretending everything was alright, that nothing really happened and she just got home from a couple of days on the jag instead of spending too long time at Aurélie’s place. Tamyra really hoped there’d be a bigger buffer period before all the questions started, but Nora had different plans.

(To be fair, Tamyra didn’t realize just how much she freaked Nora out by not returning to their place at the night of the fog - well, she did, but that didn’t go too well -, so she didn’t realize just how relieved Nora was to see her.)

And the questions were enough to sag Tamyra’s shoulders and for all of that confidence and pretence she intended to wear at least for a little bit around Nora, just ignoring everything that happened, all of it disappeared in the matter of seconds. She normally could act through the shitty parts, pretend everything was alright, but this was too much, this was too much to fake through and she still felt too sensitive about everything. She wasn’t sure she could ever not feel sensitive about it, really.

“Can we just– can we not talk about it right now? Just for– just for ten minutes? Please?” she pleaded and turned her head away from Nora, not wanting her to keep looking at her face as she moved past Nora and stepped to her water bottles which were filled. She wasn’t sure if they were just there since she left them there or Nora kept refilling them, but either way, she very much appreciated it. Grabbed one and headed over to her bed, welcoming the familiarity of it as Tamyra plopped down onto it while Nora spoke up again.

She was so worried that she didn’t touch her stuff. Nora was worried out of her mind, thinking that she was dead somewhere. Tamyra let out a groan from the back of her throat while she drank half of the bottle in one swing. “I’m sorry, I didn’t– worrying you wasn’t really my intention. And it wasn’t really the kind of situation that I could give you a heads up about. I could have sent a message to you through Rélie that you shouldn’t worry, but I really just thought you would be enjoying your alone time here.”

She was playing with the bottle in her hands. “Things turned right to shit when the fog and that fucking boat appeared, and it went right downhill from there, just got worse and worse, and it all lead to– well you can see.”

The pretending clearly didn’t work, so she figured she’d try something else. “Aside from the worrying, how are you doing? Things have been looking up since the fog and that night?”

⟻ ⭒♛⭒ ⟼

While Tamyra's initial reaction was to simply not address where she had been, it had never crossed Nora's mind. She couldn't just pretend and act as though Tamyra had only been gone for a few hours when it had been much longer than that. It was a relief to see her again but seeing the scar across her face and knowing how long she'd been away for just made her want to ask even more questions about what had happened during those two weeks, not less. She wanted answers and someone was going to give them to her at some point because she won't stand for any other option.

For now though, with the look on Tamyra's face and the way she practically begged that they not speak about it, Nora started to feel a little bad for pushing it right away. "Fine." Nora sighed, why did she have to have such a kind and caring soul? "Ten minutes. I'll wait ten minutes but this seems like pretty serious and important information to know." Even though Tamyra was doing her best to just look away from her, it was pretty difficult for Nora to take her eyes off of her. The scar was bad and Nora couldn't imagine how she could have gotten it. A fight of some kind maybe? Was that something that Emre was involved in? It could have been anything but now she had to wait another ten minutes before she was able to actually ask about it.

Tamyra explained that she didn't intend to make her worry, that she thought Nora would have enjoyed being by herself and while in any other situation that probably would have been true, it wasn't the case this time. It kind of upset her to think that Tamyra wouldn't even consider that her disappearance would worry Nora. After all these months she felt as though she and Tamyra had bonded and gotten close enough that the obvious response was to panic when two full weeks of silence passed. As much as she didn't want to make this about herself, Nora thought for a brief moment if Tamyra would have reacted the same if things had been reversed. "Well, maybe if there wasn't a murder on the beach then I wouldn't have minded being alone. But you know, seeing a man impailed by ice kind of makes you wonder if your roommate who nobody has heard from in two weeks is actually alive or not. So yeah, a quick message would have been appreciated." Her tone was a lot harsher then Nora intended it to be but maybe that would get it through Tam's head that what she did was wrong.

Yeah, things turned to shit after that day, Nora could understand that, but the sentiment was so vague that it didn't help her much. The question about how she was doing since the fog was a bit of a mixed bag. While she was stressed about Tamyra's whereabouts, it also reminded her of that night, seeing Nate showing up in the hut apologizing to her. At first she thought that he was somewhere on the island probably keeping his distance after she gave him shit but later learned that the more likely option was that none if it was real. Which meant the only person who should have been showing up in their hut was Tamyra. "Besides being worried sick about you...thing have been looking up since the fog. I felt like I was going crazy that day and...I saw someone I never thought I'd see again. Did you ever come back here during the fog at all? And maybe talk to me or someone else?"

[edmund-dulac]

Princess and the Pea (The Real Princess), illustration to the Princess and the Pea, Edmund Dulac

[newalphonsus]

@norasbolting

[norasbolting]

What do you think will break you?

"Bold of you to assume I haven't already been broken. I can't imagine there's many people here who haven't been affected by this place or life in general. Things seem to progressively get worse and worse as time passes I'm not sure I can tell you what'll be the thing that makes me snap, so I guess we'll just have to wait and see."

[actorsandactress]

Bruna Marquezine

[norasbolting]

TAMYRA​:

[ @norasbolting ]

If it was up to Tamyra, she probably would have remained in Aurélie’s hut a lot longer. Going out onto the island and letting other people see her, for the first time in her life, seemed more jarring than anything else. She has lived her entire life knowing she was beautiful and revelling in it, loving any and every compliment she got.

And it didn’t matter that her friends insisted that she still looked good, that it didn’t change anything (of course it didn’t for them, they were all those bleeding heart types who looked more at the inside than the outside), but she didn’t feel like it.

So when Aurélie gently suggested she should finally find her way back to her own place, Tamyra did make sure to take the longer way so she wouldn’t run into that many people. At this point she was very well aware that she couldn’t avoid people forever, she couldn’t hide in her own bed for all eternity (even though her pride and stubbornness could make her, but sooner or later she would start venturing out anyway, she knew that), but that didn’t mean she wanted to get through the most crowded part of the island right away.

(Maybe that would have been the smartest idea - most people seeing her face and getting it out of the way, and then they could discuss and gossip about it all they want while Tamyra let all things cool down about it, but she didn’t think like that. Also didn’t feel like she could deal with hearing half the island talking behind her back at the same time anyway.)

One person she’d have to face for sure was Nora, though, and she knew that. Part of her hoped the woman wouldn’t be around when she arrived, give herself a little bit more time to prepare, but Nora was the first person she noticed when Tamyra stepped inside the familiar, half-comforting-half-not-at-all hut she had. Straightening her back and keeping her head up high, as if nothing happened, as if there was nothing to see, she went inside.

“Sorry to disappoint, but your private, alone time has come to an end. At least in here. I hope you still haven’t touched my clothes, even though I wasn’t here, they were still very much off limits.” As casual and as normal as it could possibly be.

⟻ ⭒♛⭒ ⟼

Nora was for once, actually thankful for Emre now that he managed to give him the information that lifted a heavy weight off her shoulders. Now knowing where Tamyra was, that she was alive, Nora took the time to follow what she was told, showing up at Aurelie's hut with food in hand as though making a delivery of some kind and if she just so happened to see Tamyra there then everyone wins. Unfortunately, her optimism was cut short when she didn't see or hear anything from Tamyra when she arrived. It was almost as if nobody was home which was a bummer and made Emre the easy target, now feeling as though he lied to her. It shouldn't have been surprising but she would have liked it to be true.

So without getting any opportunity to see or speak with Tamyra, Nora just went back to their hut, unsure of what else to do. She would probably have to find Emre and give him shit for messing with her but her brain was going back to worrying about what they were hiding. As scandalous as it was, it seemed like far too much work to be a sex thing but figuring out what the true mystery was seemed like too much for her on her own at the moment.

When she hears Tamyra's voice, Nora whipped her head around eagerly to finally see her for the first time in weeks. She had sounded so casual in her greeting but when Nora turned to her and noticed the big scar across her face, it was hard for her to remain just as casual in her response. "Holy shit! Are you serious? You disappear for weeks and come back injured and that's how you start the conversation? What happened? Are you ok?" She immediately started asking, looking Tamyra over to make sure there was nothing else like that cut along her face that she needed to worry about. She remembered Emre's words that 'he didn't do anything Tam didn't want him to’ and yet, something had clearly happened because she wouldn't have this scar if he did as he was told.

Nora was tempted to ask her what did Emre do but she did promise not to bring his name into it. If Tamyra wanted to mention him herself, that was fine, but Nora wasn't going to go against her promise (but if things start getting sketchy well then, sorry Emre).

Rather then question Emre's involvement, Nora sighed, going back to Tamyra's comments about her clothes and alone time. "I didn't touch your clothes, I was too busy worrying about if you were dead out at sea or in the jungle somewhere after the fog lifted. I would have gladly enjoyed the alone time if I knew you were just taking a break from being here. A little heads up would have been nice."

[norasbolting]

EMRE​:

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Was Nora actually trying to bite back a smile?  It made Emre want to smile too, at her own pithy reply.  Like they were actually having a moment, a bit of a gas together but neither of them wanted to admit it.  It was childish of them both; not that Emre was immune to a bit of immaturity.  He was so annoyed, but the sort of annoyed where he enjoyed it.

“Oi - I didn’t do nothing that Tamyra didn’t want me to do, alright?” Emre snapped back, pointing a finger in warning at Nora, in case she decided he was to blame for anything.  He was technically a part of her disaster, but only as a follower, not an instigator.  Sailing off to try and reach South Beach was Tamyra’s idea, and Emre wasn’t sure she wanted anyone to know what she’d tried.  The shame of her failure, and all that.

But Emre realized how what he said could be taken the wrong way - like something lascivious turned sour - so Emre added,  “And don’t get no ideas, you dirty little girl, it were nothing like that either.  Fit as Tamzy is and all - I don’t think I’m her type.  Too much rough for the Hollywood diva, innit.” Emre gave Nora a cocky little wink. 

Nora was looking at him so hopefully, like a little girl on her birthday, waiting for the the gift she’d spent the whole year begging for, still fearing that perhaps she’d be disappointed.  Her pretty little face seemed turned up to him, even if they were basically the same height.  She was irresistible; at least Nora would be irresistible to some green youth, easily besotted by a pretty girl and her winsome, incorrigible charms.  

Not Emre though.  He was too old to fall for tricks like that. And Nora was too irritating for him to give in.

No, he gave in for entirely different reasons.  To spite Tamyra, of course, and out of a sense of goodwill one could only gain from sharing a near-death experience together.

So Emre told Nora, as round-about as he could, and she was entirely thrilled, her clever little face splitting into a wide, toothy grin.

She clapped her hands around his face and Emre, both fond and irritable, leered towards her.  “Well give us a kiss then,” he demanded and pursed his mouth, knowing it would be enough for Nora to shove him away in protest and disgust.  “I can handle a little worst.”

He leaned back then, unable to stop the soft laugh.  Not a mocking laugh, but sharing in her mirth.  Almost pleased, that he’d pleased her this much.  Emre didn’t think it was possible.  “Right - go on then, bugger off before I regret telling you any of it.”

END