open; lay your weary head to rest

[shivving]

Who: Joel & YOU
Where: Tartarus
When: Throughout the event
Rating: R for eventual death
Summary: There's a hundred monsters between him and Ellie. Joel will cut through every last one of them to get to her if that's what it takes.
The Story:

[ Joel opens his eyes, and his heart sinks. The room he's in is unfamiliar, and it's immediately obvious what's happened. It's another event, the mansion transforming itself around them as they sleep.

At least he remembers who he is this time.

He gets to his feet and goes to the window, frowning at the sight of a dark, foreboding green sky. Then he takes out his phone and calls Ellie. The connection's spotty, but he manages to get her location - his main objective, because he's willing to bet that she's no longer in the next room over, as she had been when he'd gone to sleep the night before. He's also willing to bet that it's not going to be a picnic in the park getting back to her.

And as it turns out, he's right. He's barely taken two steps when something horrible and screeching whizzes past his head, and just the sound alone is nearly enough to drive him insane.

Oh, this'll be fun. ]

Comments

[shivving]

[ He blinks, and suddenly Max is out of arm's reach. Joel stares after her, bewildered. ]

What the hell...

[ He follows her - what else is there to do? - frowning. ]

You - what, you can teleport?

[ It wouldn't explain what she's saying, but it's the only thing he can think of. ]

Can you get us out of here?

[mypartnerintime]

[Teleport is a good guess. She knows how the rewinds look. One moment she's standing a foot away, and the next moment she's not. But that's what happens when the rest of the world shifts backward in time and you don't, physics be damned.]

...Uh, something like that. And yes, I can get us out.

[The banshee's wail is growing louder again. Max wishes she had time to do this whole thing properly. (Funny how you often find yourself rushing, even when you can bend time.) Right now, their situation depends on this older man's willingness to trust a teenage girl's ability to survive.

Not great odds.]

But you have to trust me, okay? You're gonna think I'm nuts.

[shivving]

[ Luckily for Max, Joel has a little bit of experience trusting teenage girls, and has seen firsthand just how hardy they can be.

Even luckier, he doesn't have much of a choice.

He turns his head to listen as the banshee draws nearer, then turns back to Max, grimacing and stepping closer. ]

Alright.

Show me whatcha got.

[mypartnerintime]

[Wow. It worked. At some point Max is going to have to mention to Ellie that Joel actually listened to her. No small feet for timid old Max, especially facing up to an intimidating, dangerous adult.

Then again, when the going gets tough, she does find some inner strength.

She shifts her voice lower, barely above a whisper.]

Okay... Here...

[She leads him toward one corner of the dead end, where she crouches down. She's obviously tense, and there's a tremor in her voice.]

It's gonna go right past. We just have to be quiet.

[Sure enough the wailing grows louder by the second, and before long the banshee makes an actual appearance. It floats by the intersection, glancing down a different corridor before continuing on, oblivious to the hiding pair.

Max lets out a long, low breath as the wailing grows softer.]

So far so good...

[shivving]

[ He's still doubtful, but given the alternative...Joel follows Max quietly along the hallway, crouching down beside her. He watches as the banshee drifts right past them, hardly daring to breathe as it passes.

Huh. It worked. ]

Okay...

[ His voice is low, barely audible. ]

Now what?

[mypartnerintime]

Now... [She breathes back at him, elated at this success.

But that fades. Very quickly.]

...Now I don't know. I've never made it this far before.

[And the mild headache building in her skull means she doesn't have too many rewinds left. She looks over at him, worry etched into her features, hoping he has some sort of plan or idea.]

...Where are we supposed to go?

[shivving]

This far?

[ What does that mean? Joel shakes his head before she can answer. It doesn't matter. ]

We're supposed to get the hell outta here before one of those things comes back.

[ He steps forward, peeking into the corridor and glancing left and right before looking back at Max. ]

C'mon, let's go.