St. Peter's Asylum discussion

Cat shrugged. "Fine, I guess." Again her lips puckered into a thoughtful pout. She supposed she was fine--she hadn't had an attack in days, and the most recent hadn't even been brought on by Silas. Still, that Roxie had caused her more stress than she'd ever felt since she entered this place, which meant that no, she wasn't fine. Still, it wasn't like Felix needed to know about all that. "How 'bout you?" she asked, changing the subject from her to him. He didn't seem that new, no, but it was still a decent, polite thing to wonder.

Felix shrugged. "I've been here for about a year. The nurses never leave my side and they generally don't let me out alone with people."

"Well, you're here now," Cat pointed out with a slight grin. "Enjoy it." Either she didn't know about the rule regarding high-securities and the peach tree, or she just didn't care. Today, judging by her incredibly good mood, it was most likely the latter. "I mean, technically I'm not supposed to be without a nurse either, because I'm liable to panic attacks and they want to make sure someone can go get my brother if I have one--but that's why I came here. To get away from them and have some peace for once."

He snickered a little. "Story of my life."

Felix paused a little then, his blue eyes curious and only curious. "Panic attacks?"

Cat nodded. "Yeah. I have anxiety disorder. It's minor, though--not really a big deal." For the most part, she was telling the truth; and that was good enough for now. If Felix asked, she decided, then she would simply withhold a little more of the truth and skirt around the question. Since Roxie, she had become wary. There was no need to get others involved in her life; especially if she didn't know she could trust them.

He shrugged a little. "Still sucks though."

He pointed to himself with his bandaged hand and laughed a little. "I'm a little crazy up in here," he murmured, pointing to his head with a little laugh. "I did some bad stuff and here I am."

Cat didn't ask him to elaborate. If he was going to be kind and decide not to pry, then so was she. "Can't say I'll judge," she said with an amused little chuckle. On a bad day, that little piece of information might have startled her--this was a child, after all--but it wasn't a bad day, and thus it didn't faze her. "A lot of people have done bad things here. If you hadn't, then there wouldn't have been much cause for concern in the first place and you wouldn't be here. Am I right or am I right?"

Felix laughed as well, a similarly amused cycle escaping his own lips. "Ain't that the truth."

"Well, it is. Except for a few people who I've heard were dumped because their jerk parents didn't want to deal with them." Again Cat shrugged. "I've heard about a few of them. A little blind girl, for one. It makes me feel bad."

Felix nodded a little. "Morgan, yeah. There's plenty of people around here like her."

He clicked his tongue a little. "Most of us had really tragic home lives."

Cat nodded. "Yeah, that seems to be a trend too." She frowned a little, figuring that the statement might have had more to do with personal experience than simple observation--Felix didn't seem much like the chatty type--but again forced herself not to pity him. The last thing the people here need (or wanted, for that matter) was pity.

((I'm drawing blank. Any ideas?))

((Nah. We can fade here.))

Rory wandered off, bored and hoping for a little escape from the people around him. He had brought his pencils and paper, wanting to draw a pair of hands. Lately he had liked drawing the body, especially in detail. Eyes were his favorite, but he couldn't look at anyone's eyes and draw because that would seem creepy. Settling down under the tree, he pulled the drawstrings of his hoodie so the cold air couldn't slip into his shirt as much. Holding out one hand a roughly copying the shape with the other, he began to draw. His sequence was to improve. First he'd draw something minimal, then slowly but surely erase and recreate into something more detailed.

Again, the OCD patient was out on her own. It was odd; she had hardly ever been out without a nurse before. There was so much freedom, so much to do.

Today was a good day for the short-haired girl. Before noticing the boy, she opened and closed the gate to the peach tree, pausing as icy gaze fell upon the boy.

"Oh dear, I hope I'm not interrupting," she said to the boy, poised to leave.

His blue eyes sharply turned upward at the noise, surprised for a moment but then shook his head rapidly.
"No, no. That's okay, I'm not doing anything important." He assured her, pulling his hood down to not seem intimidating. He ran a stressful hand through his hair, his mind racing. Don't screw this up. Don't be an idiot. You're always an idiot. Just be nice and don't act creepy.

Cadenza smiled a little, and walked up towards the tree, taking a seat next to the boy. She picked up a peach beside her and inspected it, before taking a dainty bite.

She cocked her head to the side. "You draw?"

"Not very well." He replied, shrugging.
"It's a way to pass the time. There's not much to do here and I like it." Explaining this further, he looked at the girl for a moment, then back at his drawing. The fingers still had ovals for joints, but the palm was coming along nicely. It had the lines and the shading, capturing calluses from hard work.

She laughed, a little smile in place. "Well it certainly looks good."

Pale hand reached up to brush her platinum hair back into place, although for once it was not perfectly symmetrical. She took another bite of the peach.

"Thanks." He said, peering at her out of the corner of his eye. She was really pretty, he observed. It made his blood rush, his cheek tinged red and his hand shook for a moment. He steadied it and then swept across the paper, connecting lines on the index finger. You're an idiot He scream at himself. A worthless idiot who can't even talk to a girl.
"I'm Rory." He introduced himself, trying not to let himself get too caught up in his thoughts.

"Cadenza." A dainty hand was offered as Cadenza took another bite of the peach. "It's a pleasure."

A smile was offered, and a little laugh was given. Cadenza was in a generally good mood, for once, and it wasn't even due to her nurses.

He put his pen down, shaking her hand and smiled a trained smile. Lifting the corners of his mouth, he looked down at his drawing for a moment.
"The pleasure's all mine." Words, Rory, words. There these things that you learn when you're three. Use them.
"What do you like to do for fun around here?" He inquired.

Cadenza laughed a little. "Nothing, really. You see, I've got a real bad case of OCD, and so I spend most of my time in my room, cleaning."

Cadenza sighed, though her good mood didn't falter. "What about you? How long have you been here?"

His opinion about her didn't change. He knew what it was like to be judged by your titles, and he didn't appreciate it.
"About a year and a half. I have severe anxiety, as they label it. Though to me it's more of an unability to fail." Rory explained, thinking that if she shared her 'disability' with him, it was only fair that he shared his with her.

Cadenza nodded a little. "That's gotta be hard." She pursed her lips a little. "There's just, like, so much opportunity to fail in life and everything..."

With a little shrug, she took another bite of the peach.

"Yeah, I guess. It sort of just snowballed. It started out as self motivation and just turned into so much more. But other people have it worse." Rory didn't mention his self-harm and suicide attempt. He didn't want to scare away a nice girl. He wondered why she would be in an asylum just for OCD. Asking was out of the question, though.

Glancing around, he picked up his own peach and took a bite.

Cadenza smirked, and chuckled. "Yeah, that's for sure."

She laughed a little, and ran another hand through her hair, fusing with it just a little more as to make it more even. She pursed her lips a little when it would not behave, but she didn't freak out like usual. As was said, she was having a good day.

He placed his drawing aside, compelling himself to spark up a conversation. As much as he wanted to walk away and go back to his room, blame himself for being a failure and then resort to crying, he wouldn't do that. No, he could accomplish this. What's a good topic? Family? Too risky. Sports? No, no one plays sports here. Music? Hey.
"Do you like any bands?" Glancing over at her, his lower lip tucked under his teeth. A nervous tick he had acquired over the years.

Cadenza laughed a little. "I wouldn't know modern music if it hit me. I've been here since I was ten."

"Really? That seems almost impossible to me. I couldn't probably go a day with my iPod." A cool breeze swept over them, and he pulled the sleves of his sweatshirt over his hands. He readjusted himself so he could semi-face the girl.

"Well, then, what kind of music do you listen to?" Cadenza turned to face Rory, a curious smile in place.

"Well you probably wouldn't recognize them, but I listen to bands like Coldplay, You Me At Six and Marianas Trench. Sometimes music is the best way to forget." He answered.

Cadenza shrugged again, another little twitter of laughter escaping her lips. "Yeah, I don't know them."

She took another bite of her peach, and she glanced at it as she chewed. Even on her best days, everything was kept symmetrical merely out of habit; the bite marks on each side of the fruit were the exact size, shape, and location. She chuckled a little to herself before turning icy gaze back to Rory.

"Do you play music as well, or simply listen?"

"I play guitar." He answered, taking a bite of his peach. Juice dripped down his chin as he slowly chewed. The anxiety of meeting a new person wasn't a tsunami anymore, just a gentle echo of the waves rolling up on the beach. He could deal with that, as long as he watched what he said.

She smiled. "Maybe you can play for me sometime."

Her voice seemed just a little distant, as her gaze was still focused on the unconscious symmetry of the peach. She frowned, only a little, hardly noticeable.

His smile faltered for a moment, heart dropping. The dark circles under his eyes made the look even more pitiful. He didn't know if he could even play in front of people, except for his mom.
"Yeah." Rory agreed after a moment, then winced at how forced it sounded.
"Sorry...it's not that I don't want to..." Muttering this, he looked down at his hands.

Cadenza pursed her lips a little. "You don't have to; I won't pressure you or anything."

She lightened the mood with a little laugh. "I'm not that mean."

A chuckle escaped his lips at her comment. He was surprised she didn't take it personally.
"Thank you." The words sounded genuine, and Rory really meant them. Other people might have made fun of him or become offended.

She smiled brightly, before taking another bite of the peach. Cadenza fell silent; she was one of those people who welcomed silence when it came.

Again, the bites came out in perfect symmetry and alignment, and Cadenza sighed a little.

The boy didn't mind silence. He picked up his drawing again and continued, brushing his pencil against the paper with care. He stole a glance at the analytic girl and he a feeling that he hadn't encountered in a while around someone came, relaxed. It surprised him but he just smiled a little and returned to his work.

Cadenza stole a couple of glances at Rory's paper, a little smile in place as she analyzed and approved of his art. She allowed icy gaze to look over his shoulder and watch the graceful motion of his hand as he drew. She welcomed the silence, relishing in the nature sounds.

(Ermmm, fade?)

((sure.))

Cat liked the peach tree. This one spot of nature in the asylum, to her, was absolutely beautiful--and it was always a good place to be if you didn't want to be in a crowd. She hardly ever met others underneath the budding tree, and today, that was a good thing. She sat against the trunk, hunched forward with her head in her hands, keeping herself from shaking through sheer force of will. She had awoken that morning with a strange anxiety, for once unprecedented, and had immediately retreated to where she could be alone when she couldn't find Silas. She didn't want to have a random attack in public, in front of all those eyes.

The peach tree, for Yvette, was a place of old habit. Back in the old days of her stay, she had taken the tree as a place to practice, with the intention of returning to her circus. Now, the tree simply remained a place of solace, and of the occasional indulgence in memories.

The blonde trapeze artist approached the gate, and, upon spotting the hunched form of a patient, gently tapped on the gate. "Mind if I join you?"

Cat's head snapped up, her eyes wide--whether it was from anxiety or surprise it was hard to tell. She shook her head. "No." The word was spoken very softly, as she didn't trust herself to say more without revealing how anxious she was. She leaned forward again, head falling once more to her knees. At the thought of being watched, she couldn't help but shudder. She wanted to be alone--but of course, she wasn't nearly straightforward enough to say so.

The nurse pursed her lips a little, but she entered without a word. Silently, Yvette climbed the tree, an easy feat for her, and seated herself upon a branch, above Cat.

"Is everything alright?" She herself, due to her age, was often confused for a patient, and not recognIzed as a nurse. It allowed her to befriend patients easier, and so Yvette wasn't going to speak up.

"No, not really," Cat said to the ground. "I'm not...well, I'm not feeling too good. Nerves." Her distress was obvious, even in her voice--it was tense and breathy, as if she'd just gotten done running a marathon. Her body, too, was tense. "Sorry you gotta see me like this, but I kinda can't help it."

Yvette shook her head. "No, I certainly don't mind. I'm glad to help, if you need comfort."

She hooked onto the branch with her legs and flipped, so that her head of dirty blonde fell beside that of Cat's, only reversed. "What's eating at you, hon?"

Again, the younger Frost shook her head. "I don't know. I woke up like this, and I can't find Silas..." Her voice tightened on the last words, and she hugged herself for a moment in an effort to quell the stab of panic that the thought brought. "I'm sure it's nothing, but it still feels awful."