A return

[knifewithnoname]

Who: Little One and Open
Where: Luggage, Cabin 1:C and then throughout the train
When: Egret, day 21
What: Little One wakes up in a suitcase and then investigates any changes in her time away
Warnings:

Waking: Luggage

This had happened to her before. A voice from the screens and then waking up in a suitcase. But this time she had been on the mission and now she was here.

Why? Why had they taken her off the mission? She had been doing well. She had figured out the stupid space ships and the guns. But she had still disappeared and was back in a suitcase. She sat up with a sigh and looked around, instincts kicking in. Checking for danger, for people, for anyone who was too close.

Once she decided it was safe she clambered out and moved towards the exit. She paused near the door to bring up the ICP and click onto the passenger list. New people. Some names missing. She did her best to commit them to memory. She checked the day, she had been gone a while. Longer than last time. Most people were still here though. That was good.

Cabin 1, C

The first place she headed to was her room. She still had the bag she had carried on the mission and she wanted to put it down before she went elsewhere. She headed to her room quickly and opened the door with a wave of her ticket. It was strange that things that had seemed so strange only months ago now felt familiar.

She entered, planning just to throw her bag onto her bag and get changed out of the flight suit and into trousers and a hoodie.

Throughout the train

She is headed to the kitchen, as she's pretty hungry but not so hungry that she isn't going to investigate the train as she goes. Checking up on people she knows, watching them from a distance. She takes note of new people, doing her best to match their faces to the pictures she had seen on the ICP. It's difficult though, there are a lot of new people to keep track of.

But she watches, listening and taking in everything she sees as she makes her way from carriage to carriage.

Comments

(On the way to) Cabin 1:C

[iamnotgod]

Little One didn't have to travel far to find her first of the newest arrivals; a robot walked out of Cabin 1:D as she showed up.

Pausing in his way from checking in with the ICPs in the open carriages, Webmind raised a hand in greeting. He reflected, with a small tinge of embarrassment, that he knew her face but not her name.

Unless someone actually went by 'Unnamed Female', which he doubted.

"Hello, there. I believe the proper phrase is 'welcome back'?" he said, lowering the hand as a smiling face flickered into being on the robot's face-screen.

"My name is Webmind; may I hear yours?"

[knifewithnoname]

She had spotted the strange picture on the list but seeing him in real life was even stranger. He looked a little bit like Tony in his suit, a little bit like an inspector and a little bit like the stupid aliens they had fought... just moments before in her own reckoning, but some days ago in reality.

But actually he's not like any of them, not completely. She was staring at him, taking in every part when he spoke again. She remembered his name at least and nodded. "You can be calling me Buttercup if you do be wanting to."

[iamnotgod]

"Buttercup, yes," Webmind replied, nodding the robot head a fraction as part of the acknowledgement. There was a smile in his deep voice.

"Did you wish to be left alone, for the time being? Though I would like to discuss more about the Voidtrecker Express when you have time."

Being as she just got back and all.

Throughout the train (non-kitchen)

[mtsilver_conquor]

"Welcome back."

There's a small wave from where Eva's currently commandeering a table as she grooms Princess, the clefairy's face saying it all: this is so Not Princess Approved Brushing, no matter what the faint thrum-purrs say. Nope. Nope. This is Indignity.

"Want to be a pair of hands to hold him steady so I can do his tail?"

Technically, she doesn't really need the help, but there's a topic she wants to bring up at least with Little One.

[knifewithnoname]

"Hello Eva!" She smiled and waved and made her way over to where Eva was sat with Princess. Apparantly even being a pokemon didn't save you from being pinned down to have your hair brushed.

"I can be lending you my hands." She grinned and moved closer. "You will no be biting me, Princess." She scolded, but gently.

[mtsilver_conquor]

"Like this-"

She shows Little One where to put her hands to hold him then starts on his tail. To the touch, his fur's soft and very much newly brushed. Also, Princess, for all his Grumpy, is very much thrum-purring with contentment.

"He won't bite. For all his Grump, he does like being brushed."

Throughout the train (kitchen)

[emerald_mirror]

Here's a new face! The winged man stands at the counter, slicing strawberries for a tiny, impatient white fluffball who dances before him, squeaking impatiently.

"I know, I know! It's not my fault you didn't stuff yourself at breakfast," he admonishes. Three or four berries later, he slips the pile to Cottonball, turning to clean up his mess.

"Oh hey! Can I get you anything while I'm here?" he says, with a friendly wave. Oh no, he's one of those...

[knifewithnoname]

Honestly at first she had been more confused by the tiny white creature to notice that the man had wings. It was tiny and strange and eating strawberries. It reminded her a little of a dralite, except with smaller wings. Hopefully less screeching.

"Hello." She smiled and shook her head. "I can be getting my own food." She stared at him a moment, placing him with the list of passengers she had attempted to memorise. Wait. He was right at the top. "Alexander."

[emerald_mirror]

"Just Xander, please!" Having to explain about a brother who wasn't here would have been far too confusing, so he didn't bother. And it was true that Cottonball didn't really screech--at least not yet. Much more squeaking.

"Let me get out of the way, then. I take up enough room as it is." Which was true enough, though most of that was because of his wings. Though he did furl them tighter before he moved to the other side of the counter, to make it easier to get to both the stores and the refrigerated unit. "We haven't met, but that's kind of true of a lot of people here. Who are you?"

He hadn't really bothered to take too hard a look at the roster, yet.

Waking.

[hashtagparkerluck]

Peter's been keeping himself busy as the last month was a bit of a rough one so he's metaphorically, locked himself in the dressing room to focus on Conan's problem which at the moment was on stage two of lots and lots of research. He drumming his pen on the paper of his notebook-which he might need to replace again soon-actually when his ears catch a familiar heartbeat in the other room.

Recognition comes in almost immediately after and he's up moving over to the luggage car to greet her. Thank god she was okay after all. The moment he sees her face he can't help but move to scoop her up into a hug.

"Ohmigod, I'm so happy to see you! Uh... sorry." He sets her back down and takes a step back. "I know you're not like... big on hugs. but ohmigod! I was really worried! You missed."

[knifewithnoname]

Luckily for all involved she turned around at the sound of someone entering the carriage and saw Peter before he reached her. She smiled in greeting but then she was grabbed and practically picked up off the floor. She went limp in his arms, knowing she wasn't to fight him but not knowing what to do. It didn't feel bad, being hugged, but also it felt strange. She didn't panic like the time Tony hugged her, but she still wasn't sure... He still was just Peter.

She blinked at him as she was put back down. "You did be missing me? How long did I be being gone?"

[hashtagparkerluck]

Yeah, he shouldn't have hugged her-at least not without asking first. He knows better. At least she didn't stab him. Even if she had though-would've been his fault for not not giving her space.

"Uh... little over a week? because it's Day twenty one now-we got new people-lost some. Again. And since you didn't come back with the rest of us I was-I was really worried. Especially since uh... well, you saw that one dream-you know I don't really have the best track record with people I get close to." He says as flippantly as he can given the circumstances.

"Anyways, Gwen and I started this thing from back on our worlds that people have been doing-it's call the ice bucket challenge-basically you dumb a bucket of Ice Water on your head and nominate other people to do the same. For charity. I got Mr Stark when he wasn't expecting it. But I know you're not a fan of the cold so obviously, you don't have to do it."

throughout the train (somewhere near the kitchen)

[irrationally]

Honestly, it's hard to tell if Alice has even realised that the girl hadn't been present on the train for a while. She keeps to herself, after all, so she's not the best at keeping track of who is actually around and who isn't.

Still, seeing her around now as Alice too is making her way to the kitchen isn't such a bad thing. She did like the last time she spoke to the girl - as much as Alice can enjoy any social interaction, either way. So when she spots the girl, she actually greets her with a nod.

"I was just about to grab some tea. Would you care to have some as well? Or some food, perhaps?"

[knifewithnoname]

She saw Alice and gave her a smile and a small wave in response to the nod. It was good to see Alice again, she was on the list of non stupid people she knew. A list that was slowly growing, but was still much shorter than the list of stupid people.

"I would be liking tea." She nodded, "And food. What food did you be wanting to be making?"

[irrationally]

"I was thinking of something simple enough, yet filling. Like sandwiches." She may not be the best when it comes to eating proper meals, but she's trying. If not just because she's getting kind of tired of people looking at her like she's some sort of zombie. (To be fair, the super pale skin and dark circles around her eyes really aren't helping that much.)

"I might as well make one for you too while I'm at it, hm?" It's a friendlier offer than she'd extend to most people, but this girl is just a kid. And smiling. And she's most definitely weak to that. "Unless you're not hungry."

Throughout the train | Kitchen

[luckybucky]

Bucky is spending most of his time in the kitchen this month, and when she reaches that car, it's exactly where he is, peeling a massive stack of potatoes and dropping the naked ones into a waiting sink filled with cold water.

His hair is cut short now, but his smile is the same when he looks up and sees her. "Buttercup! Haven't seen you in a while. Need a snack?" as he continues liberating potatoes from their confining jackets. "I can heat you up something nice if you're willing to wait a couple of minutes."

[knifewithnoname]

He gets a wave as she enters, she noted the hair being shorter. "I did be being in a stupid suitcase." She explained as she got closer, standing on tiptoes to see what he was making.

"Yes please." She gave him her brightest smile. "I would be liking a snack."

She would never say no to food, she hadn't had Bucky down as someone amiable to making her snacks though, so that was good to know.

Also in the kitchen

[sendiintheclown]

Next to Bucky, Trowa is slicing vegetables to make a salad. Balanced meals being important and all. He looks past the taller man at the sound of a child's voice and smiles softly. "I have some vegetables you can munch on while you wait for something hot if you like."

Re: Also in the kitchen

[knifewithnoname]

She blinked at him and tilted her head. Another person she hadn't seen before. Another person who was probably new. It was stupid to miss station days, it meant she had a lot to catch up on.

"I do be thanking you." She moved closer to investigate the vegetables. "You do be being new."

Kitchen

[hateskid]

Aoko's in middle of feeding Kaito's dove that he's left in her care-she's feeding it little chunks of apple that she's cut up. She looks up as she hears someone stumble in and looks at the little girl carefully. She's still relatively new here so she doesn't know everyone and she's still settling in.

"Hello!" She offers her a smile as she feeds Aoi another piece of apple. "Did you come for a snack?"

[knifewithnoname]

"Hello." She grinned at the girl and wrinkled her nose when she saw the dove. There were more animals on the train now and she still found it strange, that people kept animals, just because. Not even useful ones.

"I did be coming for a snack." She nodded, there was no other reason she would be in the kitchen after all.

train - somewhere

[pleple]

It was getting to the point where a person could disappear for a bit, and you wouldn't necessarily notice at first. The bigger and more crowded this train got, the easier it was to just... assume that they were somewhere else. That you missed them, passing by. And Buttercup lacked any particularly large mental presence to keep track of.

So she hadn't noticed long enough to even miss her.

And that felt strange. Like she'd ignore something she shouldn't. So, she at least made a point of nodding at her when she saw her, and greeting her. "Buttercup. ...are you well?"

[knifewithnoname]

"I do be being." She nodded back with a small grin. "No stupid suitcase can be keeping me for long."

She's aware she hasn't actually been in the suitcase the whole time, but she has no idea where she has been and that thought it stupid. Not knowing things in stupid. Ple Two isn't stupid though.

"How have you been being?

train

[stealsyourheart]

"Hey! Buttercup! You're alright!" Kaito waves at her when he spots her. "You had everyone worried when you vanished...does Tony-san know you're back?"

[knifewithnoname]

"Hello Kaito!" She smiled though her nose wrinkled a moment later. "I did no be meaning to be worrying people. You should be knowing I do be stronger than stupid suitcases. I did no be seeing him yet." But it would only be a matter of time.