fandomhighdorms | Behind the Dorms, Tuesday Afternoon

Leto had actually made some plans for this meeting, in case Arthur and Zack would still be asleep, although if they had been, there would certainly have been a lot fewer people showing up.

Those plans were now pointless, however. There was no way he would put people through defining the goals of defensive tactics today. Clearly those who had spend their weekend in another reality were a little too emotional to deal with that now. Leto knew that from experience; he had spent the previous day being bitched at (hello Arthur!) or hugged and cried on. It was obvious that people needed some kind of emotional outlet today.

Also, it seemed like some people had trust issues after having run into alternate vampire versions of themselves. That could prove dangerous in a fighting situation.

"Good afternoon," he greeted everyone gathered. "Today we will work on what I believe is referred to in this time as team-building. Without loyalty and trust - both of leaders and of fellow warriors - a military unit is nothing. Where that trust is strong and army may rise about their actual level of fighting skill."

"Often this loyalty has been nurtured by shared pain and suffering. A guerilla group might have faced persecution together for a long time. Many forms of military training forces the warriors to endure severe hardships together in order to achieve something similar."

Leto smiled. "Today, I decided for a more playful and gentle approach. We will start with a shared meal. Eating together is a sign of friendship in many cultures. First, you need to divide the food." He gestured at a blanket on the ground with a large fruit bowl in the middle. "It needs to be divided equally, but for every fruit you take, you need to tell the group something significant about yourself."

"When the food has been divided, you may eat, but you may not feed yourself, only other people."

He watched the people gathered. "Any questions?"

[~~Wait for OCD!~~ OCD is up!]

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Triela nodded thoughtfully, face tight with cocentration. Even thinking about slipping the leash, even hypothetically, caused the Conditioning to roil up. So far Triela had managed to never, quite, throw up from the drugs in Fandom. She wanted to keep it that way.

"Makes sense," she said tightly. "Almost all of it depends on the handler. If you survived..." she couldn't even say it, so she swallowed instead. "If you survived you could almost start over. Maybe imprint less heavily on someone else..."

She was breathing rapidly and her face was palefrom the effort of keeping it together. She was glad she hadn't eaten much.

"Triela?" Karla asked, anxious. "Triela, you okay?" She hovered next to her trying to think what she could do. What was happening. She'd never seen Triela react this badly to anything. "Triela talk to me."

Triela swallowed dryly and nodded. "I'm fine," she insisted. She managed a wry grin. "Promise."

She forced her breathing to slow. "It's just the Conditioning. It's been a long time since I got like this over it though." Triela had a pretty good grasp of how far she could push things without adverse reactions.

"Conditioning?" Karla asked. "You've mentioned it before, but I don't understand why it would have you looking like this. You look ill, Triela."

"Conditioning is a pretty complex process," Triela frowned. "But part of it involves intense physical... discomfort if I deviate from my programmed directives." She'd one thrown up all over her boots in the middle of a particularly intense pre-mission argument with Hilshire.

Triela may have been independent for one of the Agency's girls, but that wasn't the same thing as being truly independent.

Karla certainly wasn't going to say anything, but her expression might have suggested that this breaking away might not be an entirely bad idea. "There is one more thing I was going to tell you," Karla said carefully. "It's relate to lowering your dose, but not the how's or why's of it. More of an extra effect. But I don't have to, if it will make you ill."

Triela rolled her eyes slightly in a way she hoped would be reassuring. "Karla, the worst that'll happen is that I'll throw up." Violenly and continuously for hours, but no need to mention that part. Besides that was a pretty unlikely outcome.

"If it's important.." She'd rather get it over with anyway.

"It's important, but not the way you may think," Karla said softly.

Karla wasn't sure if she should add this part, but in the end, wanted no secrets. "I think those drugs mess with your memory, too. The other Triela... She could remember your mother. Not much, just a scent, but it was hers."

A short bark of laughter burst out before Triela got herself under control. She didn't want Karla to think she was laughing at her. "That's one of the points of the drugs," she explained. "It's easier to shape a personality there's no childhood to worry about."

Then she smiled slightly. "Though I'm glad she got to remember. I hope they were good memories."

Behind the Dorms, Tuesday Afternoon

Re: Feed other people

Re: Feed other people

Re: Feed other people

Re: Feed other people

Re: Feed other people

Re: Feed other people

Re: Feed other people

Re: Feed other people

Re: Feed other people