Watching and Listening - An Empires SMP AU

Voices in her head

           "Oh, hello!" Jimmy said, noticing Ginny sitting on the counter as he walked into the kitchen. "I didn't know you had a cat!" "That's uh, Ginny," False said, an odd look on her face. Jimena didn't get it. Is she worried about the sheriff? "Siamese, I think," Jimena added, in case Jimmy wanted to know. In retrospect, it was probably obvious what kind of cat breed Ginny was. "Can I pet her?" Jimmy pleaded, making his eyes round and cute like a puppy. Even cynical and cautious False couldn't resist.

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           "I guess," She said, and Jimmy immediately started stroking the Siamese behind the ears. Norman and Flick loved it when he did that, and so did Ginny. She purred a delighted purr and leaned into his hands. Jimmy realized she wanted him to scratch that spot and he obliged, willing to do anything the cat ordered in exchange for her pleasure. It was funny how much people thought they owned cats, when in reality, the cats owned them.

           Eventually, Ginny's itch was relieved and she had no further use for the sheriff, so she hopped off the table and left the kitchen. Jimmy would have liked to keep petting her longer; her rich, creamy fur was so soft and fuzzy, but by that time False had rigged up dinner for the three of them. It consisted of pumpkin stew, boiled potatoes and carrots, rice smeared with gravy, and strawberry pancakes for some reason. Jimmy enjoyed the odd assortment, and didn't hesitate to admit it.

           "Wow, False, did you cook this?" He asked, dabbing dripping gravy off his chin with one hand and gesturing at the food with the other. False nodded, an indecipherable look on her face. "It's tasty! I didn't know you were a good chef," He said, and False slowly lit up. "Oh, really?" She stammered. "Uh, thanks! I don't get complimented on my cooking very often." "You should try her eggs," Jimena said mischievously, and False friendly glared at her. Jimmy didn't get it. Must be an inside joke... Or my brain not working.

           "One question. Why is there pancakes?" He asked. "I'm not saying I dislike them; I'm just confused as to why they're here." "Leftovers from breakfast," Jimena said. "I didn't need to eat much, thanks to your sandwich." She looked like she wanted to say more but pride dictated her to keep quiet. "Oh," Jimmy teased, "I told you those cactus sandwiches were good!" Jimena's face turned as red as the mesa sands around Tumble Town in the embarrassment of being proven wrong.

           "Wait, cactus sandwich?!" False asked in alarm. "That sounds like a health hazard." "Oh, it's not," Jimmy assured her. "They're actually really good. See, as long as you prepare it right, it's really tasty and healthy. Even camels eat it." False nodded, looking like she would rather not talk about cacti. "What's the food like in Tumble Town?" She asked instead. "Do you put syrup on your eggs?" Jimena asked, grinning, and False groaned.

           After finally learning the inside joke about eggs and having a hearty laugh about it, Jimmy launched into a discussion about mesa food. It was prepared differently from the way False made it. Most times, due to the necessity of preserving hard-earned resources in the badlands, vegetables that could be safely eaten raw were consumed so. It wasn't that they were always eaten that way; on the occasions that crops like grapes and yucca could be harvested, they were cooked in ways that enhanced their unique taste.

           "Wait, grapes grow in the mesa?" False said, dumfounded, at the same time Jimena asked, "What's yucca?" Jimmy smiled at the fact that for once, he knew something someone else didn't. "Yeah, grapes can grow there... somehow. We like eating food that retains moisture, because of how little it rains. And yucca is a poisonous plant that's really tasty." "Poisonous?!" False exclaimed. "First cactus and now poison... How are you still alive? Are you human?"

           "Of course I am!" Jimmy growled fiercely. Joel and fWhip's teasing about how he looked like Woody from Toy Story flashed through his head. He got up, slamming his chair against the table. "I am not a toy! Stop calling me that!" He shouted, his voice echoing across the mountain peaks. False blanched at the loud shouting and pushed her chair as far away from the table as it could go. "Okay," She whispered fearfully.

           Jimmy suddenly felt guilty; realizing what he just did. Wait, has False ever called me a toy? Has she even mentioned it once? Did... Did I just yell at her for no reason? "Sorry," He mumbled. "I overreacted. I don't know what got into me. I am really, really sorry." He glanced at Jimena and did a double take. She was gazing hungrily at him, watching with eyes that had a reflection of something... else, in them. Jimmy backed off and turned to the door. "I'm leaving. Sorry for intruding." "You don't have to go yet!" Jimena called. "You haven't finished the pancakes!" But the guilt-ridden sheriff left Cogsmeade in shame.

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           False and Jimena just sat there at the table for a few minutes after the sheriff had left, both slowly trying to comprehend what had just happened. Jimena felt odd. She had this strange feeling of contentment within her, a feeling that she could only compare to someone eating a king's feast and yet still wanting more. It felt weird, and she wasn't sure she liked it. Jimena looked at False, who was recovering from her shock of getting shouted at for no reason.

           "He told me that he'd been bullied for being called a toy," Jimena informed her. "Guess he overreacted to you suggesting he wasn't human." False swallowed, slowly regaining her composure. "I was just joking," She said quietly. "He didn't know that, and he apologized afterward," Jimena said. False shook her head and started putting away the food. Jimena did the same. Her appetite was somehow satiated despite her having not eaten much.

           The two girls went to sleep soon afterward, and the dreams came quickly, like they'd been waiting for them. Jimena was dreaming of the void again. She didn't move this time. She wasn't looking for anyone or anything. Someone was looking for her, and she was to make herself available. Out of the corner of her eye, someone stirred. He moved toward her, and she waited for him to make the first move. He spoke. <⍑ᒷ∷𝙹⟍̅¦ᔑᓭ...> She waited for the rest of the message, but it was incomplete and uncertain. <⍑⚍リ˧∷ǁ... ᒲ𝙹∷ᒷ...>

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           False, too, was dreaming. The dream she feared having again had returned, but this time it was slightly different. She was running down a long hallway that stretched out before her, getting longer and longer. Where's the end?! She passed a lot of doors on her way, closed doors, open doors. She didn't go in any of them. Bad rooms doors bad- bad places all bad!

           Running for her life. What was she supposed to do? Suddenly she was running in place, cuffs around her wrists and ankles and neck that measured her vital signs as she continued to run on a treadmill. Walls. Glass walls surrounding her. Even if she wasn't on a treadmill there was nowhere to run to.

           On the other side, she was there, back turned, scribbling on a notepad. She said something she couldn't hear. She checked the results that the bands around her limbs recorded and noted them down, frowning slightly. The results were strange. Why were they strange? She had to keep running. She had to keep running more tests. Run run run...