Seeing the Asylum (Open)

(June 18th – Saturday - Early Afternoon)

She had done it, Na-Ri had found her loophole. It was exactly two weeks after she had moved into her new house and struck a bargain with her father. She was an angel for two weeks (technically Na-Ri only had to follow the rules for one week, but just to be sure, she made an extra effort to behave longer.) As a result, Na-Ri now had an extended curfew and, hopefully, more trust from her father. She was allowed to explore every nook and cranny of Green Ridge on her own. Well … except St. Christina’s Way of course. About a week ago Na-Ri had printed out a map of Green Ridge to do some sightseeing on the island.

So here she was NOT on ST. Christina’s Way. She had started off on Daisy Knoll Path going directly parallel to St. Christina’s Way. According to her map around the same point that Daisy Knoll Path turned left at the riding school, St. Christina’s Way turned right. So when the Pine Hill riding school appeared, Na-Ri turned slightly right, away from the road and kept going. Na-Ri had never once stepped foot on St. Christina’s way and her father had never forbade her from seeing St. Christina’s mental sanatorium, so she wasn’t breaking any of his rules. Sticking her map in her back pocket Na-Ri had butterflies in her stomach from nervous excitement. 'THERE IT IS.'

For a second the place took her breath away. Na Ri stood close by, but still several feet away from the left side of the facilities fence. St. Christinas had a fenced in perimeter and Na-Ri could see two small buildings and a larger structure farther away. To Na-Ri this place seemed like a castle. This castle wasn’t like the ones you thought of with beautiful princes and princesses having amazing galas for their rich courtships. No, this castle was like the true castles in history; the castles that were used as forts of war and held prisoners until their deaths. Na-Ri’s head swam with examples. ‘It’s like the Tower of London or worse Oxford Castle. Oxford Castle was built with a moat to separate its prisoners from society, just like this place.’

Na-Ri nervous butterflies turned into slight anger as she saw girls and boys her own age coming out of the two smaller buildings. Na-Ri thought that all people should be free and it made her fuming that even children were being locked away. Na-Ri was frustrated knowing there was nothing she could do about their situation at the moment. After all she was only thirteen (nearly fourteen), but that didn’t stop her from trying to figure something out anyway. Unmoving, she stood there in sight if someone were to look closely enough through the fence, angry, frustrated, conflicted, and not knowing what to do.

Saturday, and Ellen was still hoping fro a reply from Neva. She was asking for a lot in the letter she'd sent out, she knew, but it was progress, right? Neva wouldn't deny that, she hoped, and with any luck the girl from her art class would be able to bring in the things she'd asked for without security asking questions. Until then though, she and Nate would make do with the one marker she'd given him already, and she'd just have to wait before she wore the clothes he wanted her to. That day would come, even if it wasn't going to be today. no, today, she was just wearing the usual, black jeans and a pink hoodie, her left hand concealed in the pocket just like it always was.

Today, she didn't have a meeting point arranged with her boyfriend, instead, she's just wandered off into the grounds, and had eventually found herself walking towards the fence. She hadn't come out this way before, not really wanting to risk getting too close to what she was sure was an electrified barrier separating her from the outside world. She was a danger to herself after all, who knew when she'd hack off her other arm, just for the sake of it? Rolling her eyes at that thought, she'd just carried on, frowning a little at the sight of a girl standing out on the other side of it. It must be a ward B or C kid, who else would be out there looking in? If there were any local kids, Ellen honestly didn't know, she didn't think they'd be interested in what went on inside the walls of the institute.

Slowly, the blonde girl made her way towards the fence, a pencilcase in the hand she wasn't hiding, and a pink sketchbook tucked under the arm she was. She had an idea in mind for today's artwork, and what she needed for it was a reference of just what shadows were cast by a chain link fence. It wasn't going to be as depressing a drawing as it sounded really, just a little ferret girl, sat on concrete on the wrong side of a fence just like this one, razor wire and all, looking through it at a single, brightly coloured flower on the other side. Compared with some things she'd drawn before, this would be positively cheerful, even if she was going to put the ferret girl in an orange jumpsuit and an explosive collar.

When she reached the fence, she flopped down onto the grass, glancing through to see ig the other girl was still there. A small frown crossed her face again at sight of her. She was still there, and she wasn't anyone Ellen recognised. Still, it wasn't like she'd want anythign to do with her, even if she was a local she probably just thought of people like Ellen as zoo animals, not people. For now, Ellen turned her attention back to the paper, if Na-Ri wanted conversation, she'd have to be the one to start it, and given that they were on different sides of an electric fence, Ellen doubted it was going to happen. Still, it might be nice to have a friend on the outside, even if she wouldn't be able to beg skirts and dresses off of her like she did with Neva. At that thought, she looked up and gave the Korean girl a small smile, and a little wave. Even just finding out what the locals thought would be good, wouldn't it?

Na-Ri hadn’t expected anyone to come along, after all this wall was on the very edge of the facilities. Yet when a girl sat down on the grass near-by and started to draw, Na-Ri couldn’t help but be tempted to go and talk to her. Sure she was on the other side of the fence, but something in her demanded that Na-Ri walk closer. Na-Ri was naturally an outgoing person and would have certainly walked over to talk with the artist in any circumstance. Yet it was the anger of this … prison’s existence and her father’s acceptance of such a place that made Na-Ri unhesitant in her approach.

She also noticed that the small blonde smiled and waved at Na-Ri. The head strong teenager smiled back. “Hiya I’m Na-Ri,” she started as she squatted down to be closer to eye level with the girl. Whether it was her age or her personality she held no fear as she introduced herself to the girl separated by links of metal and a physician’s diagnosis. “May I ask your name?” she questioned politely. At least some of her father’s lessons were drilled into her head as she patiently waited for a reply. She wondered what the girl was drawing and she wanted to ask hundreds of other questions about her current living arrangements, but Na-Ri knew her questions would be too invasive and rude after just meeting. As a temporary substitute for information Na-Ri tried to picture what the girl was like just from looking at her. She was definitely skinny, but she didn’t seem aggressive or violent, after all she smiled at Na-Ri before she even knew her. Plus she loved art and probably drew a lot considering she decided to spend her prime time Saturday afternoon sketching.

Na-Ri already had her mind set that this girl did not belong behind the fence and the least she could do was make friends with her. Most of the decision was once again due to her stubborn ways (not unlike her father), and she wouldn’t change her opinion unless completely disproven.

Given that neither girl seemed all that interested in getting too close to the fence, probably for the best given that it was electrified, Ellen wasn't expecting too much in the way of conversation. A friendly wave and a little shouting perhaps, but not a lot more than that. She would like a friend on the outside, especially one her own age, but she doubted she'd get one really. This would probably be her only chance too, as a ward A patient, she never even left the grounds, segregated from the rest of society for reasons she didn't understand. presumably, it was to do with her previous suicide attempt, but she'd heard rumours about other kids trying those at the old institute, and they all seemed to be in wards B or even C. Maybe she;'d just managed to annoy the staff or something, she doubted she'd ever know.

The girl's response to her wave was a surprise, that wasn't how she'd expected someone who probably saw her as nothing but a zoo animal to respond. maybe there was some hope after all? Doubting her voice would carry far enough to reply, Ellen instead gathered her things and stood up, moving closer to the fence before laying down again, about a foot away from it. "My name's Ellen." she replied, her tone soft, as it always was. "it's nice to meet you Nari." she continued, giving another small smile. "Are you from the town?" she asked, looking back down to her paper and starting to draw, happy enough to use Na-Ri as a model for what a fence like this would do to a person with it's shadow.

"They say everyone from the island thinks we're out of control animals, and that we should all be locked up in here all the time, even the kids who are allowed out. I'm...not one of those, I have to stay in all the time, so I don't know if that's true." she rambled, her pencil dancing across the page, "is it?" she added, looking up at the Asian girl again. "What's it like out there?" she asked, a small smile creeping across her face again. "I've been in hospitals for...a long time, I haven't even been able to pick my own clothes for two years now. What's the worn like? There's a clothes store, right?" she added, sounding a little excited by the prospect. if there was one, and if she could convince Na-Ri to get her some things from it, then maybe a ward B or C kid could bring them in for her? It was worth a try, right?

Na-Ri was ecstatic when Ellen moved closer so they could talk. For some reason when the girl mentioned her name a picture flew into Na-Ri’s mind of Ellen of Troy (replacing Helen of Troy of course). “Ellen, that’s a resilient name. Yep, well … no I’m not exactly from town. I moved here a couple weeks back and I’m on the opposite side of the island so still pretty far from the town. Then again this island doesn’t look that big. I mean you could do a walk around it if you were willing.”

Na-Ri didn’t even realize that Ellen was using her as a model. She just thought the girl was continuing with the picture she had come here to draw. The kneeling girl put a mental note to ask about the girl’s artwork later. Na-Ri was a little curious about Ellen’s art, but she was even more curious about Ellen, getting to know her and what she was like. She definitely wanted to be this girl’s friend.

As Ellen started to speak about the townsfolk, the Korean teenager became angry. Na-Ri looked down when the artist asked if it was true. She couldn’t lie, but she was ashamed that people could actually think others should lose their freedom. “Some people,” Na-Ri started slowly but fierce, “do believe that, but I don’t. I know it’s not true. All human beings are animals, but most of them are not savage barbarians and everyone should be entitled to their freedom.” She would have continued about how people who thought these things were complete idiots and should be locked up themselves to see how it feels to lose ones privileges. But then she thought of her father. He was one of the people who believed these kids were not human … that Ellen wasn’t human. Yet, he was one of the smartest people Na-Ri knew and his viewpoint manifested a deep internal conflict for her.

She decided to think of other things. She watched Ellen’s pencil move elegantly as Ellen had asked what the town was like. Na-Ri did her best in describing it. “The downtown area is kinda neat. There are lots of people and family run shops. Yep, there is even a clothing store.” Na-Ri felt a pang of guilt when Ellen mentioned that she couldn’t even choose her own clothes, even such a small freedom of choosing your style or what color shirt you wanted to wear was removed for the girl behind the fence. “I actually have a map of Green Ridge. Shifting a little to get the map from her back pocket, Na-Ri finally sat down instead of kneeling next to the chain-link fence separating her new friend.

“You can have it if you like. Maybe you could draw a picture of what you want the island to be like? Imaginations are always better than real life anyway.” Na-Ri suggested gleefully trying to make Ellen feel better about being kept inside. After all if Na-Ri could have changed this island she would turn St Christina into a real castle and set everyone free like a Green Ridge Joan of Arc.

"You're more from the town than I am." Ellen replied, giving the girl a smile. "If I ever manage to get out of ward A, we'll have to try that." she added with a small laugh. That would be fun, even if it was essentially a walk around the walls of a new prison, it was still going to be a hell of a lot nicer than staying inside the fences of this place for the rest of her life. At Hadley, there had been the promise of release once she turned 18, but here, there was no such luck. Here, they could just move her over to the adult facility if they felt like it, and keep her locked up for the rest of her life, not even able to see her friend on the outside anymore. At least there weren't any meds here, yet, besides the one pill a day they gave all the girls.

"Not everyone." Ellen replied, her voice oddly cheerful considering the subject matter, her eyes on the page as she drew, occasionally flicking to the girl. "There's a girl called Emily, she belongs in a cage. She attacked my roommate just for having a shaved head, she shoved me over for trying to stop her, and she attacked one of the security guards too. We aren't all safe and friendly, there are some really bad people in the same ward as me." she continued, still drawing, and still only looking at Na-Ri in glances. "I'm not dangerous or anything, but the others? Some of them are. Some people in here have tried to kill themselves, some have tried to kill other people, and some of us just don't deserve freedom."

It wasn't much of an explanation really, but Ellen was just bitter about being stuck in the dangerous kids ward still. She doubted she'd ever get to see her shrink, so imagined she'd be trapped in here, in ward A, for the rest of her life. At least she'd have Nate though, even if he ended up moving out and getting a place on the island. "If they ever let me out of here, you'll have to show me that too." she replied, her smile turning a little sad. "I just want to get some summery clothes, not these boring old jeans and stuff all the time." she added, glancing down at her clothes, keeping her left hand inside her hoodie's pocket still. "I have to get all the way to ward C before I can get a job and afford anything, but it'd be nice to look." she added, her smile fading away as she continued to draw.

"I'd like that." she said, speaking quietly and giving a small nod. "I've drawn lots of stuff about what I'd do if I was allowed out, but, um, I dunno if you'd like it." she continued, glancing to the girl, then back to the page again as she continued to draw. To some, she was sure her artwork would be enough of a reason to keep her locked up in here for eternity, hopefully not to Na-Ri though. Being a furry wasn't a bad thing, but then, was being borderline?

Na-Ri was a little surprised to hear that Ellen was in favor of locking people up. It was as if Ellen was ok with locking people away that were not … well Ellen and that would have just been a double standard. So Na-Ri tried to defend her point of view. She didn’t say things angrily or defensively, just logically as the world seemed to her.

“Obviously the world has people that need help, Heck look at the psycos that have ruled our planet, but that doesn’t mean anyone should be locked behind a fence. There’s a story about a king who wanted the nightingale all to himself, because of her lovely song. So his knights captured the nightingale and put her in a golden cage to sing songs all day long for the king. However, golden or not within the cage the nightingale became ill and only got worse as the days wore on. No matter what the reason locking things up does not get you want you want. It will not make the nightingale sing and it will not help the people in there.” Na-Ri exclaimed pointing to where Ellen was sitting. “It can only make things worse. Yes, people should be helped and treated if they need it, but not hidden away like some kind of goblin.”

Na-Ri had just said a speech and she knew it. She wasn’t trying to preach to Ellen, but Na-Ri always felt strongly about things and this topic was one that particularly irked her. Na-Ri realizing the passion she had worked herself into, cleared her throat. She tried to concentrate on the other things Ellen was talking about.

Clothes … right she could talk about clothes. “Anyway, one day I’d love to go window shopping with you. I can’t buy anything either. You see my dad he keeps me on a pretty tight budget and I have to work hard for it too. You wouldn’t believe how quick things can go nuts when you got five kids running around.” Na-Ri giggled imagining her brothers and sisters fighting for some silly reason. She really did love the little buggers.

Come to think of it Na-Ri was really talking a lot. Ellen was the first kid person she had met on the island besides her family so Na-Ri supposed that her talkative nature just took over. So for a moment she tried to sit still and be quiet to listen to Ellen.

"Did you hear about...Emily?" Ellen asked in response to the girl's story, her eyes still more on the sketchbook than on Na-Ri. "She's a ward C patient. No-one knows what she's in for, but she wouldn't hurt a fly. She used to work in the pet store, blonde girl, big hair. She got shot." she continued, glancing up as she continued to draw the pattern of shadows. "The rumour is she was shot for being out after curfew, but the people who heard the gun go off say it was only about ten minutes late. Do you think the cop who shot her should be locked away, or allowed to wander around the island?" she asked, looking up and at the Korean girl properly. She didn't know Emily at all, but it was hard to avoid the gossip about it.

"Some people deserve to be locked up. Some in prison, and some in here. If the people in here who are really violent were allowed to walk around out there with you guys, I think some of the townspeople would have been hurt by now. If that happened, I doubt they'd let anyone out. As it is, I have somethignt to look forward to if I can convince the staff here I'm getting better." she continued, looking back to her page and getting on with her drawing. For her, this place wasn't about getting better, it was just about getting out, and she doubted the was the only one. All she wanted was the freedom to go off campus with Nate, off to explore parts of the town where staff wouldn't go, where they could get away with more, was that so wrong?

Well, that, and go out there to buy clothes he'd like. Jeans didn't excite him, she knew that, she needed summery clothes, something to show off a little skin, but they were so hard to get in here! "At least you can get a job." she replied, smiling up at the girl. "I can't, I can't do anything." she continued, shrugging a little. "Are you the oldest?" she asked, looking up again, wondering if she should draw the rest of the girl's family around her. Maybe not in this piece, but she had a feeling she'd end up drawing this little foxgirl more than once. Hopefully, the future peices would be a little more cheery in nature than this one. Maybe she'd even give one to Na-Ri, though she would expect the girl's dad to hate it really. Most people hated furry art after all, didn't they?

Na-Ri just had to laugh. She always laughed in tough situations. Laughing helped Na-Ri feel less uncomfortable. She would definitely be asking her dad about the shooting Ellen was talking about. If anyone Na-Ri knew had information about the shooting it would definitely be her father and she would have to be careful not to give away her own predicament. Yet, Na-Ri was determined to bring up the sensitive topic. There was nothing else that she could do, especially on an isolated island that was supposed to be semi-safe how did a young girl get shot for being late?

For the moment Ellen had a good point about locking people away which Na-Ri couldn’t oppose. Sure Na-Ri was already thinking of a reply (about how even in the worst situation rehabilitation should be applied when people were locked away; instead of just being thrown away forever), but she didn’t have the evidence to back up her theory. This meant she would be doing extensive research when she returned home; after all she never backed out of something she believed in. After Laughing Na-Ri tried to turn the situation into lighter talk. “I think there are always other options, but if some security guard did that … then the guard sounds like a horrible person. I’ll show you next time we meet, because it’s hard to explain without some visual stuff.”

“And about that job, I still need to wait a few years,” Na-Ri said with a smile. Trying to continue in a happier beat, “I’m not quite fourteen yet, but it’s only a few days til then. Still, that’s at least two years til a job … maybe more depending on my Father. You can still do stuff though … look down. You seem like a great artist. May I see your drawings? Oh and to answer your question, Yep I’m the oldest of six. It’s split pretty even too. Three girls and three boys. What about you? Do you have any brothers or sisters?”

if anything, the laughter unnerved Ellen a little. Was this girl really laughing at someone not much older than her getting shot for virtually no reason? That was what it sounded like, and with a squirm, Ellen focussed her attention on the page in front of her. The little foxgirl she was drawing was starting to take shape now, clad in plain, featureless clothes for the moment, Ellen would be making them into scrubs later on, and staring through a fence very similar to this one at a single flower. The shading of the fence was time consuming, but that too was taking shape, the cross-hatching of the shadows covering the girl, and the blank space around her that would be filled in as grass later on.

When the girl spoke though, Ellen just shrugged. She'd have agreed with Na-Ri about rehabilitation in a heartbeat, but there were some people, like the guard, and like Emily, who just couldn't be helped. People like them deserved to be locked in the deepest, darkest hole Doctor Bjorgen and his minions could find, where they couldn't hurt anyone and the world could safely forget about them. "What's hard to show?" she asked, her eyes not leaving the page. What should she call this little fox girl? She'd have to find something later, when Na-Ri had got bored of talking through an electric fence like this. Whatever it was that Na-Ri wanted to show, it at least meant she was planning to meet up like this again, right? That had to be a good thing.

"You'll still get one before me, I think." she replied as the girl spoke again, looking to her and smiling a little, glad of the subject change. "Happy birthday in a couple of days." she added, wondering if she should give the girl the drawing she was unwittingly modelling for as a gift. Why not? It couldn't hurt, could it? Anything to get her art more out there, even if she was sure anyone serious would hate it on principle. Furries like her weren't exactly popular in art circles. "I'm not that good." she mumbled, her pencil stopping for a moment. "this one isn't finished, but I'll show you a couple of others if you like?" she offered, setting the instrument down and picking the book up, flipping through a few pages and holding up some of the slightly less pornographic drawings of her mousegirl avatar and various other animal people, as well as a fair few pinup style elves, wearing very little. What could she say? She enjoyed drawing stuff like this.

"I don't like to talk about my family." she mumbled, lowering the book. Jackie was dead, Rita was, well, who knew where she'd ended up, and the brother she'd never met she honestly couldn't care less about. Rita was better off without her if what she'd heard about the girl when she was here was correct, she'd left old Hadley with a boy and twins. She'd be alright, probably married by now, settled down like she'd always wanted to, and like Ellen doubted she'd ever be able to. Even if Nate did get her pregnant, no-one would let someone like her keep a baby, especially in a place like this. Anything like that was a long way off though, she was sure of that one.

"What's hard to show?"

Na-Ri was deep in concentration. She hated to give an opinion she had no evidence for, but she seemed to have miscommunicated what she wanted to say. With a sigh she admitted defeat and gave her best opinion without the proof of scientific fact. Her father wouldn’t have been pleased.

“You see I think that when you do lock someone up they should be treated better. For example, to me this place looks like a prison. It should be more … normal like regular homes and things like that. Then it would be easier for rehabilitation programs to happen. Plus when the people are integrated back into society they won’t feel so disconnected.” With a small shuffle Na-Ri continued. “But I don’t have any evidence that this will work I only have my opinion so I didn’t want to say anything until I had proof I could show you.” Na-Ri didn’t notice how boring or nerdy she could be at times. School and knowledge were things that had been drilled into her since birth and at times it was hard to act like the kid she was.

Luckily the topic was changing to nicer topics and Na-Ri jumped head first into them. “Thanks for the wishes. I can’t wait until I hit a birthday where something crazy happens. I love adventure, but anyway I’d love to see your drawings.” After seeing a few that Ellen held up Na-Ri was impressed. The teen had to crouch a little closer to the fence to see the pictures well, but they did look like they could jump from the page. “Wow you’re really good. The animals have real personification. I mean you can see the emotion in their faces.”

When Ellen said she didn’t like talking about her family Na-Ri just felt sadness. Na-Ri’s family could be annoying and chaotic, but she couldn’t imagine living without them or feeling distant from them. It hurt to know others weren’t so lucky. For a second Na-Ri felt an unfamiliar silence of uncertainty, she had no idea about what to say. In the end she decided to go back and talk about Ellen’s art a little more. Leaning back into the grass Na-Ri tried to think up a good question. “Sooo, how long have you been drawing?”

Had she known about Ellen’s hand, she would have asked if the hand had affected the talented girl’s skills. Or depending on Ellen’s reaction she might have ignored the topic altogether. Na-Ri was completely oblivious to Ellen’s hidden hand. Maybe it was the fence or just Na-Ri’s scatter brain, but either way Ellen’s secret was safe within her pocket.


(OOC: Sorry about my own scatter brain. I meant the laugh to be like oh no she was defeated in debate, but rereading it definitely didn’t come off like that.)

"They don't keep us in cells or anything like that." Ellen replied, eyes still on the page. "We have dorms, like you'd have at a boarding school or something. it's not so bad really. If they gave us little houses with our own bedrooms and stuff, people like me would never come out of them. Having people around my room I can be friends with, like Tara Anne, makes it easier for me." she continued, still drawing. People like Emily made everything a lot harder of course, but she was in ward A, there were always going to be dangerous people around her. people probably thought she was just as bad as the psychos, but she didn't care, or at least, she pretended not to.

"Hey, fourteen is a good year!" she replied, her smile growing a little. "you get loads more adventure out there than I get in here, are there any woods or anything like that on the island? You can go have camps and adventures and stuff in those if there are." she continued, looking back to her page, still smiling a little. Life on the outside must be so much nicer than being cooped up in here all the time, she just hoped she'd be able to see it one day, even as just a ward C patient. She didn't think she'd ever actually be released, not after everything she'd been through since her arrival here. still, it could be worse, at least she had Nate here.

"Thanks." she replied to the compliment, blushing and squirming a little. "A lot of people don't like anthro art, and because I draw a lot of it, they won't look at the other stuff I do." she continued, flicking past a few pictures of elves, some of them rather more adult than she might have realised. With the book lowered and her gaze back on the half finished piece, she got to drawing again. "I don't know really, for a long time. A lot of it wasn't healthy though, I used to draw...bad things. Things people did to me when i was gorwing up." she replied, her voice quiet. "Now it's all good, healthy stuff though." she added, looking up at Na-Ri again and giving a small smile. "I might be ward A, but my pencils are the only thing I'm a danger to, really." she continued, though her shrinks wouldn't agree and she knew it. Forget them though, they didn't know her.

Na-Ri thought about being cooped up inside all the time. It never occurred to her that people might actually want to live like that. With a internal nod Na-Ri was determined to have a better rebuttal when she met Ellen in the future. Maybe she couldn’t win Ellen over to her side, but it was fun to debate and it let Na-Ri gain insight so she could discuss this with other people as well.

"you get loads more adventure out there than I get in here, are there any woods or anything like that on the island? You can go have camps and adventures and stuff in those if there are."

“According to the map there are some woods on Green Ridge. Of course they could be possible adventure spots, but I think I’m having an adventure right here too. I mean I met you and it’s not every day you get to meet someone over a high *cough* impenetrable *cough* fence.” At this Na-Ri giggled a little. After all, the fence wasn’t so impenetrable that new friends couldn’t meet face to face or at least voice to voice. “One day we will have to go on another adventure together.”

Na-Ri listened as the girl described her old drawings. Even some of Ellen’s newer drawings could be seen as … well Na-Ri doubted her father would approve. The teenager thought drawing probably helped Ellen though. After all she could show her feeling that way eve of she couldn’t talk about them. “I think drawings are a way to the soul. Not some spiritual type of thing, but you know they help express who you are.” Na-Ri wasn’t trying to go all philosophical, but she wanted to tell Ellen that her art didn’t bother the Korean teen and she liked how real all the characters were.

“Some people write or talk, or even create mischief just to show who they are, but drawings can tell a story that can’t be said in words ya know. That bein said I can’t draw to save my life, so I just talk a lot. Hope you don’t mind,” Na-Ri looked at Ellen with a giant smile on her face. “Unfortunately my dad also thinks I can be really stubborn and say things way to forwardly for a lot of people.”

"There are woods? How come you haven't been to them yet?" Ellen asked, smiling over at the girl again. If there were woods out there, she knew the first place she'd be going if she ever managed to make it to ward B or C, even if it was just so she could get some decent references drawn. Chances were it'd be much more than that though, if she could get Nate out there anyway. If not, well, a day sketching out in the woods would be a day well spent, there was no denying that. "I think you'd have a much better adventure playing in the woods than talking to someone like me, but maybe if they ever let me into ward B or C, I can go visit them with you?" she suggested, looking down at the page again. It would probably never happen, but it was nice to dream.

"I'm not as fluffy as my drawings are, but...I guess I'm not so dark as my old ones were either." she replied as the girl continued, shrugging a little. "It'd be kinda cool to have a tail though." she added with a smile as she turned to a full page nude drawing of her mouse avatar, her body covered with the black lines Nate liked to draw on her, and her real and robotic hands covering her, at least a little. "I wish I looked like this. not the mouse, but..." she trailed off, shaking her head and smiling as she flipped her book back to the piece she'd been working on today. "Sorry, I kinda have body image issues." she added, eyes on the page to hide her embarrassment at the confession. Why did she have to be so fat?

"I don't mind." she continued as the girl spoke again, by now getting back to her drawing. "I don't usually talk a lot, so you can talk for both of us!" she added, glancing up and smiling again. it was nice to have a friend, even if she doubted she'd get to see Na-Ri again anytime soon. Being trapped in here didn't exactly lead to any really interesting topics for them to talk about if they ever did meet up again, and that was assuming the girl's family would even let her come back. "I don't have any family, so...they don't say much about me." she added, giving a small shrug, eyes locked on the page, shading in details as she spoke. She wasn't out for sympathy, just stating a fact.