FEBRUARY SEMINAR OVERFLOW

[maskormods]

WHO: All imPorts who haven't taken the evacuation option!
WHERE: The Royal Mansions Resort in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
WHEN: February 16-20, from 10 AM to 8 PM.
WHAT: ImPorts attend The Perestroika Seminar to receive mandatory training and brainwashing. Need a quick recap? Be sure to check out a brief description of what they'll be doing HERE, though we will be separating this into sections for your reading pleasure! ImPorts will be able to distract themselves with their mental link on the network during brainwashing videos, and imPorts who possess a strong will will be able to resist being successfully brainwashed. We leave the extent of the ramifications of brainwashing up to the individual players, and what they are comfortable with. Please direct all questions HERE.
WARNINGS: Brainwashing, mental manipulation, and possible violence. The original log can be found HERE. Please remember that anything written in this log will not count for AC -- it's just up so that any players who have continued their logging don't need to deal with captcha. Have fun!

Comments

Raina

[flowerette]

[ Catch all for continued threads. ]

[subourbon]

[continued from here]

... I'm sorry to hear about your boyfriend. Sometimes I still feel the same way about my husband and kids. Of course I don't want them to be in danger, but at least we'd all be together.

[Alison sighs a little before propping herself up at the edge of the pool to somewhat gracefully exit the pool and sit next to Raina.]

[flowerette]

That must be even more difficult -- knowing they're back home and not here with you. But in a sense, it might be better. At least you don't run the risk of forgetting they exist entirely when this is all over.

[ She laces her fingers around her knees. ]

How old are your kids?

[subourbon]

Forgetting they exist? Why--?

[But she cuts herself off, not wanting to pressure Raina into obviously upsetting topics.]

... Gemma's seven and Oscar's nine. He hasn't quite reached the point where he won't hug me in public anymore, but I know it's coming.

[flowerette]

Oh. You're close to the terrible teenage years, aren't you? My condolences. I imagine that will be a most difficult time.

[ But as for the question Alison didn't press -- Raina doesn't mind discussing the mechanics of this world. It's just the way it is and everyone should hear it from someone. ]

When you return home from this world, you forget everything that has transpired here. It's the inevitable fate we have to face. Friendships, allies, lovers. All forgotten and nonexistent. There are a few people here who have gotten married, and to me, it seems a silly thing to do -- knowing what will happen if one of them go home.

[subourbon]

... oh. I guess I hadn't thought of that.

[And truth be told, much as she likes some of the people she's met here, Alison can't help thinking how much easier it'll be to slip back into her own life without all of this weighing down on her.]

That must be hard to deal with, but I guess there's no point doing anything but living day-by-day.

[flowerette]

You're right. It can be all gone in a moment. And it's easy to forget that as the days blur together.

Come April, I will have been in this world for a year. If you're one of the luck few to make it that long, you'll be surprised at how fast it flies by.

[enustari]

[continued from here]

Why should they have the right to decide that? I'm not some wayward child in need of a lecture or a spanking; are you?

[Part of her wants to get through to Raina, but mostly she's just pissed off.]

And as far as I'm concerned, they can take their agenda and shove it up their frigid assholes.

[flowerette]

[ That gives her pause. Her brows knit together and she feels uncertain. ]

We don't even know what their agenda is.

[ Wait? We? Raina doesn't have to include herself in this because to her, it doesn't matter. ]

I mean you don't know. How can you belittle it if you have no idea what it is? We do know they want equality for all of us, and isn't that the greatest thing we can have? Do the Americans treat us as equals?

[ There's a momentary disconnect, though. Because Raina before wouldn't have been into that equality. She was all about herself. But she pushes it back. It feels so much better to be taken care of. ]

[enustari]

[Elsa doesn't give a rat's ass about equality and she's pretty sure after all that cult leader talk at the spa that Raina doesn't either. Not deep down, anyway. So this is pure brainwashing talking and it's disgusting.]

Do you even hear yourself right now?

[flowerette]

It's not about me hearing the message. It's about you hearing it. I worry for you, Elsa. The more you fight, the more you will suffer. Is that really what you want?

[enustari]

When the alternative is lying down and giving up control, yes. My autonomy matters more than avoiding a little pain.

[Which isn't to say that she won't bitch and moan about that pain constantly, because she will. But she's never been one to take the easy way out.]

[flowerette]

In the end, you'll see the truth. There's only so long you can avoid it. And you'll feel so much better when you do.

[restingstitchface]

[Continued from here.]

Yes, well, I could have had everything. But there was no point in going for quantity when I was interested in quality.

[A pause.]

Do you realize what's terrifying about a man once you know he's dangerous, Raina? His intentions! Everybody here wants to know what I'm doing right now, and not one of them know a thing.

[flowerette]

But that also makes it more difficult for you to move in the ways you would like.

[ She crosses one leg over the next, pushing her plate aside. Raina has no appetite, really. Not while wallowing in depression. ]

No matter what you try to do, you'll have eyes on you.

[restingstitchface]

[He drums the table, his mind going back to his imprisonment in Arkham, then Blackgate, and then his work in that travesty of a court. It had been terrifying, really. All of those people had had their eyes on him.]

Of course. People scrutinize what they cannot understand. They keep it under watch, but in the end it doesn't matter. [His lips curl in a small smile.] You should eat, you know. Frederick will be fine and back before you know it.

[flowerette]

[ She's about to counter with something, but it's lost on her tongue the instant he brings up Chilton's name. Her brows knit together and she shrinks back into the chair. ]

That's uncharacteristically kind of you to say. Which leads me to believe you know something more than you're letting on about the kinds of things he faces back home.

[restingstitchface]

[Well, there's the reaction he'd been searching for. At least she's giving him that. Not that he wouldn't be thrilled to scare it out of her, mind.]

You know about Hannibal Lecter. You know about the kind of people he faces back home. I think you know as well as I do about the suffering he's being made to endure. The only alternative is that Frederick hasn't shared all of his life with you.

[flowerette]

[ Crane. ]

I know everything up to this point. But I can't know his future.

[ Please. It's not like she's clairvoyant or anything. ]

If anyone has been close-lipped about the whole thing, it's Will Graham. He comes from Frederick's future. And as far as I know, he hasn't even told Frederick what will happen.

[ She tilts her head, studying him. ]

Of course, the two of you were close. You and Will. You observed him, didn't you? Under the influence of your toxin, that is.

[mantlepieces]

( Continued from here. )

[ Raina's aggressive response only encourages Reggie's own defensive aggression, but that's what he's used to -- provoking others instead of empathizing, doing whatever he needed to deflect from whatever happened to be bothering him in the moment.

He cocks his head at her, expression very much one that effectively says challenge accepted. ]

She has already and she came back, so what do I care? She's just a girl I'm spendin' my time with for now... if she was really out for good there's always another girl. I ain't missed anyone that's still gone yet -- better to use 'em like you know you'll lose 'em.

[flowerette]

That sounds an awful lot like a bunch of lies.

[ This is good. This is distracting from the fuzzy, floating feeling. This is normalcy. ]

Lies to protect yourself from feeling anything. From grieving their loss. You think you can put up a wall and keep the emotions out. But your wall isn't infallible.

[mantlepieces]

I dunno what the hell you're talking about. [ Stated quickly, sharply. ] What loss? Once they're gone it ain't my problem anymore -- if I'm gonna be "grieving" it'll be 'cause of something real.

[ Reggie crosses his arms, shoulders hunching and expression sullen. She may be right, but hell if he would ever acknowledge that. ]

What would you know about it, anyway? Not like your emotions are doin' you any favors right now, are they?

[flowerette]

It might not bring him back, but they help me feel better by letting them out rather than keeping them internalized. I owe it to him to grieve him openly after how long we've been together.

[ She shrugs. ]

Though, at least I still get to keep the house and the things he gave me if he doesn't return. You stand to lose your job, don't you? So I suppose you should hope right alongside me that he does come back.

[mantlepieces]

Can't have been that long -- people just want company around here. Seems like once they find someone good enough they start acting like they're married or something.

[ He goes quiet for another moment, then hisses through his teeth. ]

There's other jobs. [ A beat. ] Why should you care if I miss him or not?

[flowerette]

[ Because Chilton has always been surrounded by people who didn't really care about him. Because Raina wanted to see that this world was different and people genuinely did care about him. Because she wanted someone to grieve with over his loss. ]

I can't expect you to understand. Not because you're incapable but because you refuse to let yourself feel the emotions you should.

[ She pauses outside the door to the classroom. ]

Well, I suppose it's time to carry on with our duty.