110 - VIDEO

[cautionarytale]

[Elle sits down in front of the camera, looking decidedly freaked out. Her hair is damp.]

Okay, I was willing to roll with probably being a businesswoman or maybe, like, a really high-class hooker...

[Awkward glance down at her push-up bra and shirt with the plunging neckline.]

And then I was in the shower and there was this spider and it kinda startled me and I electrocuted myself. I dunno how, but it felt like I think sticking my finger in an outlet would feel.

[She waves her hand like she's trying to conjure up electricity, but nothing happens.]

What if I'm--

[On the lam from a government research facility? An alien? A superhero in disguise? She kind of squeaks as she realizes that in none of those situations is sharing a good thing.]

Never mind.

[Paaaaauuuuuse.]

Has anyone seen a chubby middle-aged balding man with glasses around? I've got a--

Never mind.

Comments

[equalsfive.livejournal.com]

I fit all of that bar balding.

Are you sure you didn't just catch a shockingly unsafe wire or something?

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

This guy's definitely balding.

I... looked, but it's not really important. I might've just imagined it. Oh god, what if I'm schizophrenic?

[equalsfive.livejournal.com]

Ah, then it's not me. I have hair.

I don't think it's easy to imagine electrocution. It might have only been a tiny loose wire or something, with the water to conduct the electricty. I could come and have a look. I have an odd feeling I might be an electrician, now. I have overalls and... have no idea where any of that information came from.

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

If you could find it... I mean, maybe I just. Um. There's probably a little wire or something that I just overlooked. Not a big deal. Somebody mentioned that there're public showers. I'll just use those.

[equalsfive.livejournal.com]

I'll come and have a look. I don't have any... tools, so I'm not sure I could fix it, but it's better than thinking you've electrocuted yourself.

spam/assume?

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

Alright...

oh, spam. I'm not getting enough use out of normal o'brien.

[equalsfive.livejournal.com]

...where am I going?

spam it is!

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

Fifth floor, room 11.

Re: spam it is!

[equalsfive.livejournal.com]

[And O'Brien turns up at her door, knocks once, and waits.]

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

[Elle opens the door nervously. What if he's tracking her down from the government laboratory she escaped from? Or is her arch-nemesis? But it would be really suspicious if she avoided him, wouldn't it? Or would that be the smart thing to do?

Flashing a smile at him as she tried to stave off her paranoia, Elle gave him a quick "Hi." before standing aside so he could come inside.]

[equalsfive.livejournal.com]

[O'Brien gives her an amiable, but unreadable, smile and stepped inside,] "Right, your shower? Through here?" [He looked distinctly uncomfortable in a shirt and tie, and already was rolling up his sleeves to his elbows. It just felt so wrong, wearing a tie.]

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

"Yeah." [Elle attempted to surreptitiously move over to her desk, where her laptop was open and the picture of the middle-aged man in the suit was displayed. She tried to turn the picture face-down without him noticing. The man in the picture might be... a contact. Something like that.

Or maybe she really was being insane and there was a loose wire. Even though loose wires didn't seem like the kind of thing you found in showers...]

[equalsfive.livejournal.com]

[O'Brien found himself casually observing her, noticing her moving to the desk, automatically presuming she had something to hide, and wondered why she seemed so worried by him. He didn't really think he could be right about the shower, but the idea of her producing it seemed more absurd. He started looking at the fittings around the light first,] "So what happened?"

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

"I saw a spider on the ceiling, it kinda startled me, and it felt like I'd stuck a fork in the toaster." [Not that she knew what sticking a fork in a toaster felt like... she thought.]

[equalsfive.livejournal.com]

[O'Brien pulled a face and continued fiddling with the light, which was the only real source of electricity he could spot,] "Well, I can't really see anything wrong here. Have you tried doing it again?"

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

"Showering again or electrocuting myself again?" [Elle asked with a strained little laugh. Having a stranger in her room was making her progressively more uncomfortable.]

[equalsfive.livejournal.com]

"Electrocuting something, not yourself. Like... try and touch something conductive."

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

[Very cautiously, Elle reached out and touched the metal frame of the cabinet door. It stung! That was definitely static electricity right there.] "Everybody gets static shocks. That's no big deal," [she said, half to herself and half to him.]

[equalsfive.livejournal.com]

[O'Brien pulled a face,] Are you sure? Try something else. Lightening ah, doesn't strike twice.

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

"No. It's okay. You know what, I... I'm a pathological liar," [she said, as though coming to a realization. Okay, so, not pathological, but she was a good liar. Maybe she was a spy?]

[thatsaflaregun.livejournal.com]

You're missing someone too, are you, sistah?

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I guess. I don't know, really.

You're the guy looking for that woman, right?

[thatsaflaregun.livejournal.com]

Aye. Yes. There seems to be an unfortunate number of us with photographs and no sign of the people in them.

[lt-n-uhura.livejournal.com]

I think we're all looking for someone.

What do you have?

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

I've. Um. It's not important, really. It's just a photograph. It could be anything.

[lt-n-uhura.livejournal.com]

A photograph of a person? That's something!

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

Yeah, but I don't know who it is.

[lt-n-uhura.livejournal.com]

If you have a picture, that should mean that you at least like the person. That they are important to you.

[cautionarystory.livejournal.com]

Or Right.