Topaz nods along, focused on getting away from the plants and to somewhere warm before Aventurine collapses on her, only half listening until it all collides together in her brain and forces her to a halt. Standing in a quiet hallway with no one around, she looks around left and right before letting go of Aventurine’s hand and whirling around on him, staring at the broken shard of a cornerstone as he rambles on.
What. The. Fuck. Universes? Ghosts, plants, possessions sure she can work with that but. His cornerstone is broken. They fixed that… she pulls out her phone. No notifications. But the clock is still set to the right timezone, two system hours since she looked at it last. No signal. No Signal. Fuck she can’t think about that right now. She’s got to prioritize. She’s so good at prioritizing. She steps closer to Aventurine to stare him in the eyes, whispering. “Aventurine, I need you to be 100% serious with me. No Jokes. No Tricks. No Gambles. What happened to your cornerstone. We fixed that at your Trial two system hours ago. Everyone but Diamond was there.” She reaches up, grabbing him by the arms. Her hands aren’t shaking, Aventurine is. Right? Right. She’s just trying to steady him. “What do you mean No IPC. Where… where are we.”
Re: Sometimes it is easier to move with the Topaz than against the Topaz (and Numby)
What. The. Fuck. Universes? Ghosts, plants, possessions sure she can work with that but. His cornerstone is broken. They fixed that… she pulls out her phone. No notifications. But the clock is still set to the right timezone, two system hours since she looked at it last. No signal. No Signal. Fuck she can’t think about that right now. She’s got to prioritize. She’s so good at prioritizing. She steps closer to Aventurine to stare him in the eyes, whispering. “Aventurine, I need you to be 100% serious with me. No Jokes. No Tricks. No Gambles. What happened to your cornerstone. We fixed that at your Trial two system hours ago. Everyone but Diamond was there.” She reaches up, grabbing him by the arms. Her hands aren’t shaking, Aventurine is. Right? Right. She’s just trying to steady him. “What do you mean No IPC. Where… where are we.”