Grey Skies, Grey Ground

[Grim Wolf]

Xavier followed the flicker of the girl's eyes to his waistband.  His eyes darted to Sunny as she spoke, then back to the girl with the shotgun.

Christ, that shotgun.  How quickly it could turn him to tenderized meat.  Leave him a puddle on the floor.  And it was pointed right at him.

Draw your gun and shoot her you're not a pacifist you're not a hero you're a stupid punk kid come on come on come on!

God, his heart was thundering in his ears.

"She's right," he said slowly.  "We're not looking to fight.  Are you?  Are you going to shoot us just because you're afraid?"  He lifted one hand towards her, then put the other on the gun at his waistband.  Pulled it out without pointing it at her.  And then placed it slowly on the ground.  He stood, and took several steps to the left.

"I'm the only one of us with a gun," he said.  "And I'm not going to do it.  Are you?"

He grinned, in spite of the thundering in his heart and the doubts screaming in his brain.

[Solitair†]

Arthur couldn't help but stare down the gun barrels. He wasn't imagining things, was he? She actually intended to use violence against him? He froze, tightly hugging his legs, and practically willed himself to turn to stone right there. "Not moving, not moving," he mumbled, not sure if Stacy could even hear him.

So it fell upon Cho and Xavier to talk her down, since he was such a bundle of nerves that he couldn't do anything. Maybe if he had the gun, not Xavier, he could help, or maybe an itchy trigger finger would just make him part of the problem. Why did he have to be so damn skittish all the time?

Once Cho and Xavier said their pieces, pointing out the logical immediacies of the situation, he took a breath and relaxed, becoming less tense in his huddled posture. "We won't take another step closer. P-promise. If you want to leave, you can leave. But please don't shoot."

[Will†]

Seeing movement from Cho, Stacy switched her aim so she was pointing the shotgun at her; she didn't want her sneaking off and getting the missing weapon that Arthur didn't have. However, it turned out she was just attempting to reason with her. Stacy opened her mouth to reply but was interrupted by Xavier who began to speak. She pointed the shotgun at him and released a small gasp as she saw his hand reach down towards the gun in his jeans. Eyes widening with fear, Stacy gripped the shotgun so tightly that her knuckles turned white and pointed the shotgun more threateningly at Xavier.

"Don't!" She shrieked. Stacy's hands began to tremble which caused the shotgun to wobble slightly as Xavier slid the gun out of his waistband. However, when he took the gun out he didn't point it at Stacy, he instead laid it on the ground and stepped away from it then spoke.

"No... I don't." Stacy replied quietly. Lowering the shotgun, more tears began to fall down her face as she spoke. "I just want to leave."

Stacy began edging back from her classmates slowly and re-adjusted her bag so it fit comfortably on her shoulder. She stared at the three wearily whilst putting her free hand down by her side and stretched it out slightly behind her so she could feel when she hit the tree-line. It only took a couple of steps until she felt a branch of leaves brush against her hand. Before turning to leave, Stacy looked at each one of her classmates once more.

"I'm sorry." Stacy said in a trembling voice.

She turned and swiftly headed back into the woods in which she came from. Stacy proceeded into the woods at a slight run, her eyes fixed in one direction; she needed to get herself out of this forest.

((Stacy Ramsey continued in Rebel Diamonds))

[Namira]

Cho's mouth was dry as the weapon was swung around in her direction. She'd said her piece, thought she'd thrown in enough to make it clear she was being light-hearted as was possible. And now the gun was being pointed at her. Cho was keenly aware of exactly how much of her that the shield wasn't covering, but duck back and what did that say? It didn't exactly calm things down any, and it made it look like she couldn't be relied on to, to...

The others chipped in too. Not-Arthur pulled out his gun - the shotgun went away from her, and for a second that stopped her heart, Cho looked at Stacy's face and thought she was going to pull the trigger. If that happened, it would immediately be carnage, no doubt, no second thoughts about that. There was no way it wouldn't... he was putting the gun down on the floor. He was trying to show that they could all be trusted. Cause, y'know, Cho was so incredibly untrustworthy and suspicious and could take someone out at any moment. Common known fact that musicians all had training in mystic arts of kung fu.

Arthur was less diplomatic, more plead-y. Cho didn't blame him. If she hadn't spoken up first and things went the way they had, she probably would've been more or less panicking too. Stacy, for her part... backed down.

Cho let out the breath she'd been holding since she stopped speaking, then shook her head. Cho didn't know Stacy - as in, she didn't know, know the other girl. Beyond the name and the most prominent hobby - which to be frank Cho wasn't even sure if she had right. She didn't know what made Stacy tick, but to see someone that panicked already... hell, she'd been nearly as bad behind that shield, who was to say that given a gun, Cho wouldn't have reacted in the same way?

Urrrrghfucksake.

With Stacy gone, Cho looked sidelong at the other two. She didn't have any reason to distrust them. Didn't have any reason to trust them either, beyond not-Arthur putting down his gun back there. She still had reservations though. Surely she could find some people she knew at least a little better than these guys? Cho would feel a lot more comfortable with Gabriella around, that was for sure. She had her own thing to do...she couldn't really ask them both to come along, too.

She forced a smile.

"Well, I've been having the time of my life just now, but I think I left the iron on," Cho sighed. "Seriously though... stay safe out here. I'm gonna head off. You guys know each other, and you don't know me. I don't want to be a hassle here and I have people I want to look for that I dunno if will match up with what you want to do... so I'm going to save us all the debate. Good luck, okay?"

Cho shifted the shield into a slightly more comfortable position (and it was nice that it had more than one grip, meant she didn't HAVE to carry it readied at all times) and move away off into the woods, in a different direction to where Stacy had gone. Didn't want the other girl to think she was being followed... North? North seemed like an idea. Hopefully wherever she wound up didn't have more people toting guns and panicking...


((Cho continued in Old Holmes))

[Grim Wolf]

(I think Xavier's handle is Hurricontel, but I'm not sure)

And in an instant Xavier realized how fragile he was, how easily that trembling girl could squeeze her finger and smash him to pieces, and he wasn't a Plant or a member of the Eye of Michael, he wasn't a homunculus blessed with extra lives, he didn't have any tricks or fancy abilities he knew of, bullets would end him, but...

But then she was gone.

Xavier felt the grin on his face flicker, torn between collapsing in on itself and widening.  Hadn't convinced her, really.  Hadn't quite managed to get across the idea that they were the same people as before.  But...

And then the other girl was gone.  Xavier turned after her and shouted, "You never answered my question!" but damn that girl could move surprisingly fast given how heavy that shield probably was.  Impressive stuff.  Should have recruited her.  Could have been the Cao Ren to his...uh...not Cao Cao, he guessed.  Well, maybe someone as competent as Cao Cao, but not so ruthless?

"Well," Xavier said, as his grin unfolded across his nerves and his fluttering nerves were calmed in a spreading, soothing pool of triumph all through his chest.  "We're alive, Countryman!"

He moved back towards his gun, scooped it up, and slid it into the back of his jeans again.  Deadly weight.  Deadly gun.  Could kill someone.

And he wasn't a Vash the Stampede.  He wasn't that skilled.  And he knew that he couldn't get that skilled, not now.  He might have to kill someone.  He might.

But that wouldn't be his first option.  That would never be his first option.  He would aspire to the ideal, because when he did everyone walked away alive.  Because who knew what would have happened if he hadn't spoken up?  Would that girl have shot the girl with a shield?  Or Arthur?  What if he hadn't asked if she was okay?

He could do it.  He'd already done it once.

"I'm gonna go," Xavier said, turning to face the other boy.  "See if I can help people.  Wanna come?"

[Solitair†]

Arthur could feel himself deflate as he watched Stacy's panic working its way out of her system. Deep down, she feared for her life, seized up by a primal fight-or-flight instinct by the presence of other people, other threats. They lived, however briefly, in a new world, one that carried nothing over and permitted everything.

But she stood down. Whether she decided that she couldn't go through with pulling the trigger on another human being, another student like her, or she just calculated the odds of winning a fight and didn't like the results, Arthur might never have known. But he wanted to believe that her voice spoke true, her tears real.

"I'm sorry," she said. Arthur finished half of his reply, "It's o-" before she vanished into the woods. Besides, 'it' wasn't okay.

Three left. Arthur looked Cho and Xavier in the eyes, unsure of what to say next. It felt like one wrong word would somehow pull them down into all new depths. But Cho spoke first. Said she wanted to leave? What?

Okay, maybe she didn't know him. He'd only seen her once in a while, seen her being funny and playing music. He never actually talked. He didn't do that sort of thing, not with one of the other people. They didn't have enough in common.

Don't let her go. She's gonna die. You'll never see her again. But he did. He let her go with no reaction stronger than raising a hand and opening his mouth. After she left, he stared at where she went, dumbfounded. Really though, what was he expecting? Friendship was just a word here. No magic to be found.

Except maybe where Xavier was concerned.

"Yeah, alive," Arthur muttered. "Um, listen, Xavier. I'm... I don't want you to call me Countryman in real life. I know it doesn't really make much sense since I just told the viewers back home who I was... so my fans know I'm probably gonna die... and it's not like people can look up the stuff I posted, but..." He sighed. "It just rubs me the wrong way. Call me Arthur."

He smiled and got up, slinging his bag strap over his shoulder. "But I'm glad to go with you anyway. I'd lose my fucking mind if I had to walk by myself around this place." As he walked away, in the vague direction that Cho walked in, he reached into his bag and felt the M&M bag. "Come on, you can have some of this fucking candy they gave me as a weapon. That sound good? M&Ms?"

((Arthur Wells continued in The Usual Suspects))

[Grim Wolf]

No to Countryman?  Well, the way he put it, that made sense.  People would watch this one day.  He wanted his name known.

"Yeah, alright," Xavier said.  "Arthur."  His grin widened.  "Sword from a stone.  Chosen leader.  Works for me."

Had to do it.  Had to live big.  Had to live impossibly good.  There were confused people like that girl with the shotgun all over this island.  Friends turned to killers by their own pain and confusion.  They could be saved.  He had to believe they could be saved.

The question was, how far could he go?  And it was not a question of what he could do--he might not be a Vash the Stampede or an Edward Elric, but he was storng and he had a gun and that was some power right there, maybe enough to make a different.  The question was his will.  What could be called his resolve.  Could he handle having a body as pitted with scars as Vash's?  Could he, if that's what it took?

Well, was there another option?  He couldn't think of one.

So, his grin widened.  Because his doubts were mostly gone now, and because Arthur was willing to join him.  He had a nakama already.

"Candy sounds great," Xavier said, grabbing his bag.  "Let's eat and walk."

And off, onto the island, onto adventure, onto being the salvation people so desperately needed, whatever it cost him.

(Xavier Contel continued in The Usual Suspects)