The roof, Saturday afternoon

[notmyownage]

So, it was official. They said it on the radio and everything. Fandom sucked, and was out to get her.

Okay, so they didn't say that bit. But they did confirm that the latest weirdness meant it was, like, the one time she could have gotten any of her family to actually visit the island. She figured it would have been nice if her parents showed, but she could forgive them. She barely even remembered them -- she'd been too young when they'd died. But to have Joshua not show up?

That was just . . . mean.

So she was up on the roof, staring vaguely over the edge, watching out for people wandering around with their dead loved ones and generally being grumpy. It was probably a really good thing she and Scully hadn't put a trebuchet up here, yet.

[ooc: Roof of emo is open, yo. My poor girl is working on an epiphany, but she's absolutely botherable.]

Comments

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully held the door for Melissa when they reached the top, and said, "It's just a little roof-top garden, but I thought you'd like to see it." She smiled when she saw Claudia, a little shy again as she was around anyone meeting Melissa. "Melissa, this is Claudia, the one I was telling you about. Claudia, this is ... um. My sister."

[notmyownage]

Claudia lifted one hand in a wave, then blinked as connections were made.

Oh.

"Uh, hey. Nice to meet you."

[crystal-sister.livejournal.com]

"Hi!" Melissa, by contrast, was just this side of bubbly. "It's great to meet you. I never got to see enough of Dana's friends before. Well, aside from Fox." She held out a hand to shake, and added, "This is amazing, seeing her back in school like this."

[notmyownage]

Claudia's brows went up, doing a little bit of math as she shook Melissa's hand. "Sister." The age difference between Melissa and Scully was even bigger than her and Joshua. "Why wouldn't she be in school?"

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully was looking extremely uncomfortable, and jumped in to say, "That internship. Which was hands-on learning, instead of classroom." She took a breath. That even made sense, didn't it?

She'd wanted to introduce Melissa as her mom. Her paperwork said she was Scully's mom. But Melissa wouldn't agree, not from the first minute. So. The truth it was.

[crystal-sister.livejournal.com]

Melissa's expression was so deadpan it was a parody. "Internship. Right. That." She really, really hated lying. Especially when she didn't agree with the reasons.

[notmyownage]

". . . Right." Someone wasn't being totally on the level, here. "So. It's . . . totally awesome that you managed to come visit."

She didn't really sound like she thought it was totally awesome. She sounded like she was trying to think it was awesome, but falling short of the mark.

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Since Scully was the one not-on-the-level, she was really looking for a topic change here. She looked around, then back to Claudia, and her expression became guilty and regretful.

"Yeah. It is." She swallowed, sending Melissa look pleading for help here. "Missy died three years ago." And she couldn't say how without getting into too many explanations. Plus, more guilt. Anything else to talk about... "We were thinking of putting the trebuchet up here. But decided it was good out in the campground."

[crystal-sister.livejournal.com]

Melissa was kneeling down by the plants now, but watching Claudia. "I'm lucky that I got to come back," she said, ignoring Dana's attempt to change the subject. "I needed to tell Dana so many things." She was automatically deadheading some of the flowers, cleaning out the fallen leaves on one plant. "Our dad didn't come. He and Dana had closure."

[notmyownage]

Closure. She and Joshua never got closure.

"I'm glad you guys get to work things out." And she was, on this bit. "How -- I mean -- were there any other, like . . . rules? For who came back?"

[crystal-sister.livejournal.com]

"Not really. There's a stone out in the Preserve." Melissa nodded in that direction, over the treetops. "It's a good thing. It arrived early this week, and started pulling energy to open the gate to the afterlifes for us. So it would know who to call, it made people dream of those they wanted to see." She smiled slightly. "We're only here until late tonight. Then the gate opens again, and we have to go."

Dana looked away, and Melissa wished she hadn't reminded her of that.

[notmyownage]

"Dreams." Like how she'd been thinking of Joshua earlier in the week. Dammit, none of it was adding up! "Do you suppose . . . maybe it didn't have that much power?" But people had shown up all over the island.

[crystal-sister.livejournal.com]

Melissa was a little bit psychic. And a lot insightful, as her sister could tell you. But she restrained herself to a simple, "No. It had enough. If it could reach someone who was dead, who someone here wanted to see..." She shrugged, and stood up to put an arm around Dana, who uncharacteristically leaned into her. For her, that was clinging. "You were hoping for someone?"

[need-no-moon.livejournal.com]

Jake hadn't had a visitor either. He just didn't try to think too much about it, it wouldn't change much.

That didn't mean he couldn't wander up to the roof. "No jumping, okay?" he joked when he noticed who was up there.

[notmyownage]

"That'd be no good, anyway. Knowing this place, I'd end up surviving." Claudia smiled vaguely to show she wasn't serious. "So, you end up with a dead grandma hanging out, or something?"

[need-no-moon.livejournal.com]

"No," he shrugged a shoulder. If anyone'd showed up, he'd have thought his mother would. "Guess no one's got any wisdom to share with me. I must be too smart for them," he joked, taking up post beside her. "What about you?"

[notmyownage]

Claudia heaved a breath. "Nope. I mean, I didn't really know my parents, anyway." Jake would know well enough to know her parents weren't the only ones who might show.

[need-no-moon.livejournal.com]

He shot her a look before he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the railing. "Do you think it'd help seeing them, or would it just hurt more giving them up again?"

[notmyownage]

"That part . . . would totally suck," she admitted. "But it'd be nice to get to say goodbye."

[need-no-moon.livejournal.com]

"Yeah," he stared in the distance for a while. "What would you say to your brother if he were here?"

[notmyownage]

"Not sure I'd even say anything. Just hug the crap out of him."

[need-no-moon.livejournal.com]

"Fair enough," he looked back at her. "I'm sorry I couldn't get to meet him."

[notmyownage]

"Yeah. . . ." Claudia paused. "I, uh. Actually might have a theory about that."

[need-no-moon.livejournal.com]

"About me meeting him?" he asked, because he didn't think that'd warrant a theory.

[notmyownage]

"Yeah. Kind of." She rubbed the back of her neck. "So, uh. Here's the thing: there was never a body." And that wasn't an odd thing to be saying about her brother at all. . . .