Є004

[forgetyourusedtobe]

Who: Elena + You
Broadcast: video
Action: marsiva
When: rite nao!!

[Elena is curled up on one of the couches.]

So is anyone else starting to get a little worried we're not going back to our ships? I thought maybe this would last a couple of days or a week at the most, but...

[She shakes her head a little with a sigh.]

At least they gave us some entertainment, I guess.

[If her tone of voice is any indication, she doesn't find that all that comforting.]

Comments

[mylegacy]

Oh, good. Finally someone who's not going to call me paranoid.

[forgetyourusedtobe]

People have been calling you paranoid about the the same...people [to use the term loosely] who kidnapped us and stuck us in a space reality TV show against our will putting augments in our brains and giving us no way back home without their say-so?

[mylegacy]

Yes.

[Wow, how much bitter sarcasm can one dude pour into one syllable? Apparently a lot.]

[forgetyourusedtobe]

[Do we need to pop in the Princess Bride again, Caesar? She can queue it up.]

Well, it's not paranoia if it's true.

[mylegacy]

[If something's worth watching once, it's worth watching 2739482349 times.]

That's what they say.

Providing entertainment just seems like a good way to keep us complacent.

[forgetyourusedtobe]

I hate to say it, but there's not exactly a whole lot we could do against them right now anyway.

[mylegacy]

Thank you for reminding me.

[forgetyourusedtobe]

Sorry, I'm usually a little better at this whole cheering people up thing.

[Being quite used to dire situations and all.]

[mylegacy]

[Yeah, well, you're talking to the eternal pessimist here, so.]

It wouldn't be helpful if it were just a lie. It's fine.

[forgetyourusedtobe]

Is a lie really such a bad thing if it gives someone hope?

[mylegacy]

That's not what I mean. It wouldn't give me hope if I knew it wasn't true.

[forgetyourusedtobe]

You don't ever try to at least trick yourself into believing it?

[mylegacy]

No.

[He's quiet for a moment.]

I think I would like to see the truth of things, if I can.

action;

[stefanged]

[Stefan approaches her, soon after that broadcast, with a freshly made cup of Irish coffee (and of course, his usual mug of tea for himself). Salvatore doesn't comfort people with food, he suspects - but it's second nature for Stefan to whip something up and bring it over, even if neither of them need it.]

Hey. I finally remembered how to make this, so... [He sits beside her, holding out the mug of coffee.] One Irish Coffee, with a little extra just in case.

[forgetyourusedtobe]

[Elena smiles, sitting up on the couch both to actually drink the coffee she's being offered and to make room for Stefan, tucking her knees in close to herself. She takes a sip from the coffee, making a surprised hum.]

I'll say there's a little extra, [she teases.] Thanks, Stefan.

[stefanged]

No problem.

[He returns the smile, taking a sip of his tea.]

I just figured, with all the craziness and weird dreams we've been having, you could use something stronger.

[forgetyourusedtobe]

[She flashes a wry smile at the mention of the dreams. Her memory is a little hazy when it comes to all of those dreams, but she remembers enough for it to be uncomfortable.]

Too bad nothing seems to really help when the clock gets down to zero.

[stefanged]

[Unfortunately, he's been remembering everything, even when he wants to wipe the memories from his brain. Atroma's been stupidly fickle that way.]

You too? I was wondering if that was just me.

[He lets out a sigh.] Most of them haven't been too bad, but I've been seeing my friends' memories and it's been... weird. Like I'm intruding on something I'm not supposed to be.

[forgetyourusedtobe]

I don't know what the point of this is supposed to be. [She takes another sip of her coffee.] What do they get out of it?

[stefanged]

If the audience can see all of this, impossibly high ratings - but of course, that's assuming that we're on a TV show to begin with.

[While he can't outright deny that hypothesis, he's not sure he believes in it either.]

[forgetyourusedtobe]

Still a skeptic?

[stefanged]

Not at first. Over time, some things started to bug me - like how we don't get fanmail, or how no one's been able to find the cameras that film us. Or us not being recognized everywhere we go.

[He sighs, staring down at his mug.]

I don't know what lengths Atroma would go to, to fake a TV show, but I don't think it's the whole truth.

[forgetyourusedtobe]

[It sounds a touch paranoid, honestly. Not that he doesn't probably have a right to be. Elena should probably be a little less trusting and accepting herself.]

They sometimes read fan letters though over the announcements. And we might not be able to see the cameras. The technology here is way more advanced than anything I've ever see, anyway.

[stefanged]

[He nods, conceding to that thought]

True. We had teleporters in Locke, but they weren't as uh, refined as Atroma's. [That part of home - Locke-home - he doesn't miss. A life without world teleportation is a pretty decent one.] I don't know, Elena, something feels off.

Even if it's my imagination, I don't feel right ruling anything out.

[forgetyourusedtobe]

I guess that's not such a bad thing... [she says with a vague smile. Frankly, she just doesn't have that kind of energy. It's a lot just trying every day to feel like everything's fine and normal.]