I chose... Rapture. [Faith/ Dream]

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Welcome to Rapture. A city where the artist can roam freely, the scientist can create with the sky as the limit, and the power is with the people. Such a place could never exist on land therefore it was literally built on the bottom of the ocean, as far away from the governing powers as possible. Out of every jurisdiction. The extreme of extremes. It is a massive place with buildings that tower over head and long walkways that link different areas of the city together.
Everything you could ever want you can find in Rapture. There are stores, restaurants, hotels, spas, housing units, art galleries, markets, sports centers and for those who enjoy a little bit of nighttime excitement there are bars and love-houses. Everyone is welcome in Rapture! There are no minorities. Everyone is equal. Everyone gets a fair share.
All of this is thanks to to the hard work and dedication of our founder Andrew Ryan!

At least..that's how things used to be. Before the revolution. On New Year's Eve, at 12:00 on the dot, just as the clocks were ticking down and the champagne bottles were about to be popped, explosions rang through the entire city. The whole foundation of Rapture was shaken to its very core. Those explosions marked the beginning of what would be a long battle throughout the streets between those who supported Andrew Ryan and those who supported a man named Frank Fontaine. Soon blood coated every wall on every corner of the city. The year 1959 was off to a great start.

Hundreds died and those that didn't die..were left to slowly go insane. Driven only further to insanity by their addiction to Adam; the genetical stimulant that once kept the wheels of Rapture turning.
The side-effect of this drug was both an overwhelming addiction to it and a range of horrible disfigurations due to the way the drug affected the human body. Those addicted where named Splicers and those Splicers are all that are left in this city. They do whatever they can to get their hands on Adam..even if it means killing each other. Many have banded together in order to overpower those who are weak, making them even more dangerous.

The revolution was two years ago. There are now those who are merely trying to get by and those who are trying to escape. But to escape means going through hell and back again...straight through the center of the city. Can you make it out?
Let's see, shall we?

Without even fully thinking about it, I realized that the words I spoke were completely true. Ever since we arrived in the facility one bad thing after another seemed to happen to us. Of course reuniting with my old friends was one positive thing but everything else that had happened added to the negative side of things.
There was also the moment only the night before when we admitted our love for one another and that..that was the most amazing moment of my life, but it could only make a dent in the problems we were both having.
We were both having nightmares and struggling to recover from the injuries we had both sustained during the battle. Was there a way to escape the nightmares without making the injuries worse?

The thought of leaving, when Mira told me that she would follow me the moment I made the choice for us to leave, was very comforting. Of course it was going to be very hard to leave the other Sisters behind but they had probably long guessed that we weren't going to be sticking around. As nice as it would have been to stay there with them, it would not get us any closer to our ultimate destination.
I also doubted that they would want to come with us either. More because they had found somewhere they could live in almost complete safety than because they were afraid of being killed while trying to reach the surface.
They were far more level-headed than I was. Each and every one of them.

"We can't leave yet.. Your side hasn't healed yet." I said quietly as she moved away from me so she could stand up, helping me up with a hand. I stood up slowly and looked down at her with an expression of worry.
I was more worried about her trying to convince me to leave while she hadn't fully healed yet than anything else. The very last thing I wanted was for her to get hurt even more because we hadn't waited long enough.
Her wound was the worst of our worries right now.

Her arm wrapped around my waist and she pulled me along with her towards the bed we were nearest. I sat down first and I moved a little bit aside as Mira joined me on the bed. At first I didn't say anything but then I reached out to gently take her hands with mine, setting them on my leg with a small smile.
"But we'll leave soon I promise. Once we're both well enough to travel we'll leave this place without looking back. "
I whispered quietly in an excited tone.
I wasn't sure why the idea of leaving was so inviting to me. Perhaps I was just ready to move on with our journey and get away from a place with so many bad memories attached to it.

I sighed quietly as I pulled her onto the bed. She wanted us to wait until I was fully healed before we headed out. I didn’t want to agree with her. I didn’t want to say that she was right. I was very ready to get up and walk out of that door for the last time, but was I willing to hurt myself further just to leave a little sooner? The answer was most definitely no. I had done many stupid things since I had met Echo, that fact was very true. Even if that was the case, one more stupid thing could be the difference between making it to the surface and not making it to the surface. Stupidity could get me killed. I wasn’t willing to risk it. This place was a safe place to heal. What if I got hurt out there while I was still injured? There wasn’t a promise of a safe haven out there, especially since we hadn’t really been any farther in our journey. Of course, I was sure that Echo had at some point, but it was easy to get by without leaving Pauper’s Drop, so what was the point of leaving it?

I sigh quietly as I think over the actions we could take. There was really no way of getting out of here for at least another day. I didn’t like sitting around though. I got very antsy when I stayed in one place for too long. I didn’t want to start getting the jitters now. I knew that I would though, because we couldn’t leave yet. We could leave and take a chance or stay for a little while longer. I knew that Echo wouldn’t go for the first, which left us sitting here, doing nothing.

I watch her quietly as she takes my hands, placing them on her leg. I watch her a moment, taking in the words that she speaks. I nod quietly. She was very excited to get out of here. I could tell simply by the tone of her voice. I wasn’t sure why she seemed so happy to be getting out of here. It wasn’t that I couldn’t think of a reason, hell, I could think of plenty. I was just curious as to which one of the ideas got her the most excited. I smiled at her, unable to keep it from reaching my eyes.

“I did wish we had more options though.” I knew that we wouldn’t have any, but it was a nice prospect. I take in slow breaths, letting myself fall back on the bed, my feet dangling limply off the edge. I look at the ceiling, my hand still where she placed it before. I take in a deep breath, letting out a strange noise. It was some sort of mixture between a groan, a yawn, and something else that I wasn’t exactly sure of. It sounded like I was strangling a cat or something. I sigh quietly, unable to keep the quiet laugh off my lips.

“Sorry. I’m a weirdo” I giggle, pulling one of my hands away to pull on her shoulder. I wanted her to lie down with me. I hoped she would. I watch her though, still smiling. I wasn’t going to force her to do anything though.

(I hope your traveling went well!)

When I mentioned Mira's side she nodded her head in agreement. She knew I was right. If we chose to move too quickly then she would end up with restricted movement as well as the possibility of her getting an infection. An infection in Rapture meant either death or permanent physical damage. Neither of which were things that we wanted for the rest of our journey together to the surface.
She sighed and allowed herself to fall back on the bed which made me turn to her with a smile, watching her as she just laid there. A strange sound emerged from her lips that caused my face to lose itself in confusion.

She giggled at the sound while drawing her hand away from my leg to place it on my shoulder. With a gentle tug I knew she wanted me to lay back with her but a mischievous look came to rest on my face. I looked down at my companion with a grin before I, very carefully avoiding her side, climbed on top of her with my legs on either side of her hips.
I brought my hands up to take hers, threading my fingers through hers, before placing them on either side of her head.
I leaned down to press a soft kiss to her lips, drawing away only slightly to smile down at her.
"Grrrawr.." I purred gently.

"Mira? Echo?" A voice came from the doorway. A second later Focus peered around the corner only to find herself face to face with the scene of me pinning Mira down on the bed. Without context the whole thing looked very questionable. Her reaction to the whole thing went more or less as follows; her entire face turned deep red, she let out a noise that was somewhere between a gasp and an 'oh', and then she ducked around the corner and pressed herself against the wall tightly.
"O-Oh! Sorry.. I didn't know you two were busy. I'll come back later!" She said as quickly as she possibly could before her footsteps could be heard going down the hallway back in the direction of the common room.

I drew myself off Mira faster than I had ever moved before in my life and I came to sit on my bed across from her. My hands immediately flew to my lap and my fingers started to fidget nervously. My cheeks were more or less a deep shade of crimson but at the same time there was a smile on my lips.
After a moment I couldn't help but burst out laughing at the pure bizarreness of what had just happened. After all, what were the chances that she would come now as opposed to moments earlier when we were sat normally next to each other or moments after when I would have gotten off of her once my playfulness had gone off.

I quieted myself down to just simple giggling before I finally was left with a silly little smile. I sat there happily before I lifted my gaze up to my companion, examining her expression carefully.
"I'm sorry.. I shouldn't have done that." I said in a sincerely apologetic voice as my fingers went back to fidgeting in my lap.
I surprised myself with how forward I was even taking into account the fact that I had only done it in a playful manner. Once again my mind was too quick to act on its impulses.



(It went very well thank you! I'm just running around unpacking through so I apologize for the gaps between my posts)

I hadn’t really expected the movements that went on after I pulled on her. It seemed that she didn’t want to lie down with me. She looks back at me with a grin the likes of which I have never seen. I watch her quietly for a moment before she moves. I don’t get a moment to react. She turns over, planting herself over me. I watch her quietly as she pulls my hand to hers. I take in a deep breath watching as she pulls our hands over my head.

She purrs and I flush, watching her in silence. I take in a deep breath, unable to form words as I watch her. I can see the look on her face now a lot better. She’s playing with me, but the way she sits I can’t help but watch her in silent. I want to say something, but I can’t. I just can’t make the words come.

A small smile forms on my lips as I watch her. She was cute; I could very easily admit that. It was something that I liked about her. Even after the worst of times, she could make something great.

Before we have a chance to move, there’s the sound of footsteps in the hall. I look over just as Focus calls out our names, coming around the doorway. I couldn’t keep from flushing in such a position. She must have thought the worst about the both of us. Being caught in the bed like we were! How embarrassing!

She seemed to be much more embarrassed than we are though. Her face is the color of cherries and she’s lost for words. She doesn’t know what to do and quickly pulls herself out of the room and out of view. I never thought I would hear the girl as flustered as she was, speaking apologetically. It was like she had never seen something like that; hell, she probably hadn’t.

I hear retreating feet and Echo jumps off me. For a moment I think she’s about to chase after the girl to explain that we hadn’t been doing what it very obviously looked like we were doing. Instead, she moves to her bed, eyes going down to the hand in her lap. She’s smiling, but her cheeks are the same shade as mine. I pull myself up quickly, a grunt escaping my lips as I move.

I watch her as she laughs almost uncontrollably. She isn’t exactly controlling herself and I’m sure that her voice can be heard down the hallway. I watch her, unsure what to do. I wanted to laugh because I found it funny, but she found it quite hilarious. Maybe it was because she knew Focus better than I did. She knew the friend that had stumbled out of the room flushed and confused.

I chuckle quietly at the prospect and soon we both quiet down until we’re both smiling like fools. I can’t help but school closer to her on her bed. I sigh quietly, watching her. She begins to apologize like she always does. Maybe she’s afraid that she’s humiliated me or something? I doubt it, since there’s a grand smile on both of our faces. I lean forward, giving her a soft kiss. After a second of holding my position, I let myself fall back.

“Don’t apologize…If anything, you should be using that energy to try to calm your friend down. It seems we…flushed her…” I can’t keep the giggle off my lips as I cross my legs, putting my hands in my lap. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone so red!” I chuckle, the soft smile on my lips as I watch Echo. I wasn’t sure what she was planning on doing about her friend. It was her friend though, so she should be the one to do the explaining if she thought it should be done.

Mira's reaction to being caught in such a questionable position was very much the same as mine. Her cheeks turned a dark red color but her focus, like mine, was on the Big Sister who appeared and then disappeared just as quickly in a flushed mess.
She did not find the whole scene as funny as I did though but that probably stemmed from the fact that she did not know the girl as well as I did. If she had, she would have known that Focus was the kind of girl to become flustered at pretty much anything having to do with love, kissing, or what happened when the lights were off in the bedroom.
Just the mere mention of walking hand in hand with some handsome stranger could have Focus off in her own world with her cheeks a light shade of pink.

As I sat there waiting for Mira's answer to my sincere apology I couldn't help but wonder what she thought about what I had done. She hadn't fought me when I took her hands with mine nor did she seem to want to get out from beneath me when I leaned down over her.
Was there any chance that she had enjoyed the suddenness of my action? Perhaps she enjoyed the playfulness but also the other emotions that came with it? I was not quite sure what to think at this point.
The only thing I knew was that I felt something when I was leaned over her and I wasn't quite sure what it was. Yet again I was faced with my inexperience causing me problems.
However I could not bring myself to ask her about what it could be that I felt. I was much too embarrassed to admit that my lack of experience had me questioning my emotions again.

Instead of answering my apology with words Mira let out a quiet sigh before leaning over the short gap between our beds so she could brush her lips against mine softly. I was taken by surprise for a split second, having expected a vocal response rather than a physical one, but my lips were quick to soften and return the kiss.
When she drew away I watched her with a smile.
Mira was right. I was going to need to get a word in with Focus even though I knew she was going to understand.

"Focus is a little bit like me.. More often than not the both of us snuck into this room to read books together and coo over all the little details in the romance novels I had. Just the same as me she's never really gotten the chance to experience much.. I'm sure that's why she got so flustered. I'll speak to her, don't worry." I smiled up at my companion with a small nod of my head.
I was happy to see that she wasn't too embarrassed by what had happened and that she even seemed quite pleased. It was quite remarkable how everything could go from being sad to being happy to being humorous in a matter of minutes.
A rather good thing I was sure.

After a second of pause I moved from my bed back to hers so I could sit next to her, placing an arm around her waist gently. I took a moment to look into her eyes before I leaned forward to kiss her this time, a soft and loving kiss, that I drew away from a few seconds later.
"I don't know what I'd do without you, Mira. I..love you." I whispered to her quietly as I drew my other hand to rest it on her shoulder, pulling her into a half-hug that kept her side from coming in between us.
The last thing she needed was pressure against her injury.
"I'm going to need to get a new suit..and armor.." I said with a sigh as I glanced over her shoulder towards the pile of ash covered plates in the corner. Not to mention the fact that I had spent this whole time in a torn diving suit with the front practically in shreds.


(Okay you might not find this funny in the slightest.. but I found this video and I thought that you of all people would appreciate it. xD )

I wasn’t sure how this was going to work out. This girl had been so much a part of my life for what I could only guess to be a week or so. That was all it took to feel attracted to her. I can’t help but watch her and wonder whether or not I was going too fast with this. Was I just a hopeless romantic who fell into love far too easily? If that was the case, then what would happen when things got serious between us very quickly? I didn’t want to think that I was a hopeless romantic, but I also had to keep this girl’s feelings in mind. What happened if she decided that this was all too spur of the moment for her? What would happen if she did lose those feelings for me once we got topside? I knew that there wasn’t sinister behind her actions. She wasn’t using me to get topside, but what happened if she found someone else? I sigh quietly, to myself. I wasn’t sure what I would do if that happened.

I only catch the last half of what she had been saying really. I had been so lost in my thoughts. I felt bad for not hearing her, but I felt that my worries were much greater. Maybe I was being selfish. I sigh quietly; so many maybes.

“I hope we didn’t fluster her too much. She might scare your friends” I give her a light wink, watching her quietly from where I sat, cross legged on the bed. In only a moment she’s back on my bed. I sigh quietly. I was getting tired of this space between us. Before I can get up to fix the space, I feel an arm hooked around me. I turn my head to look at her and her lips fall onto mine again. I can’t help closing my eyes and leaning more into her.

With her words, my mind is put a little more at ease. She said she didn’t know what she would do without me, which was a good sign. It wasn’t a concrete sign, but it was a good sign. I lean into her as she pulls me close. I close my eyes, trying to calm the thoughts that wanted to burst out of me. I take in a slow breath before opening my eyes again. She was talking about her armor now. I pull away to catch her looking behind me at the armor that had been discarded in a hurry. I sighed quietly, watching it.

“Can’t you get like an upgrade?” I question her as I pull myself away from her grasp. In a second I’m off the bed and moving things around. There was food still on the table where I had opened it the night before. I pick up the entire nightstand, pulling it around the edge of the second bed. I push it out of the way so I have room to move. I don’t wait for her to realize what I’m doing. If I do that then she might try to stop me. I take in a slow breath, walking around the bed. “Watch your toes” I mutter the words quietly, pushing the unoccupied bed forward to meet the other. It wasn’t heavy; actually it was very light seeing as the set was made of metal. With a quiet grunt I make sure they’re completely together before placing the nightstand next to the bed duo. I crawl quietly onto the bed, coming to sit beside her, hooking an arm around her waist. “That’s better”

(I must thank you for posting the vid. I did enjoy it quite thoroughly! That actually made my night!)

As I explained the situation between Focus and I, Mira seemed to drift off into her own little world. In her eyes I could see that she wasn't completely there with me but a part of me didn't really mind the fact that she had zoned out. Why would she be interested in the life I used to live and the friends I used to have? There was no reason for her to be.
However I was a little bit surprised to hear her reply to my words, finding I smiled at her response. She was right. If Focus did happen to run back to the common room and share what she had seen, I was going to be in for a whole lot of side poking from the others as soon as they could get to me.
Not that it was necessarily a bad thing all things considered. The more of a hard time they gave me the more I could be sure that they hadn't changed over time.

When she felt my arms wrapped around her warmly, my lips press against hers softly, and my words whispered into her ear, she seemed to relax out of some kind of thought she had convinced herself of. Like my words put to ease worries that had crossed her mind about the feelings I had for her or the feelings she had for me.
I couldn't really see how she could doubt my feelings for her for even a second. Sure the feelings seemed to come out of nowhere, well not nowhere but relative to the time we've known each other it's pretty much nowhere, but they were as sincere as feelings can be.

"An upgrade?" I repeated more to myself than to her as I watched her get up from the bed. My eyes followed her around as she walked to the other side and then started to push her bed towards my bed. She warned me to watch out where my feet were so I brought them up onto the bed, wrapping my arms around my legs that were pressed to my chest.
"I guess it depends on what kind of armor I can find at the suiting area of the facility. If there are any suits with iron plating left.. I'd be more than happy to pick out a suit like that. It sure would be able to take a lot more than my old suit could, clearly." I said while the beds came together as one and she finished the moving of the bedside table so that we now had one big bed to share with the both of us.

When she climbed back into bed with me and wrapped an arm around my waist, bringing a smile to my lips, as I shuffled closer to her welcoming warmth. I slipped one of my arms around her shoulders so I could draw her closer to me, resting my lips against her forehead lightly.
I could have stayed there forever as far as I was concerned but I doubted that she would have liked that very much.
"Would you come with me to the armory?" I asked her quietly while my fingers started to slowly stroke through her hair, enjoying the silky feeling beneath my fingertips.


(I thought you might! I saw it and the very first thing I thought of was this roleplay and how fitting it seemed.)

It wasn’t really that I wasn’t interested in what she had to say. I was very interested in her past life and the people that she was friend with. I wanted to thoroughly know about every part of her life. It wasn’t that I didn’t care; I simply got caught up in my thoughts. I wasn’t sure why that was happening. I wasn’t sure why I could get so distracted by my thoughts now. It wasn’t fair to Echo; I knew that for a fact. I wanted to keep from distracting myself anymore. I didn’t want to wrong her anymore.

My input about the upgrade must have been a good thing. She repeated my words quietly to herself, thinking for a while. I pulled myself back up onto the bed as she continued with her thoughts, saying them aloud. It would be good if we could get her a new suit. She would be much more protected then. I wouldn’t have to worry about something being stuck through her leg because the leather of her armor wasn’t strong enough to protect her. There was a lot that worry in my every time that we went out. Every fight and battle was just another worry that her armor wouldn’t hold up to the fighting.

We stay in silence for a little while. She pulls us closer and I can feel her warmth enveloping me in a protective cover. I like it when we just lie here in the silence. It’s so calming and peaceful. I liked knowing that I was just with her. We didn’t have to do anything more to get along or to keep each other’s company. We could simply pull ourselves together in a huddle, talk quietly to one another, and be happy in the simplest of ways. It was good since there wasn’t really television, games, or any sort of entertainment to keep us busy. By now, you were used to not having any entertainment. Even then, sitting in the same area for too long could make you antsy. It was good that just talking to her and being with her completely voided that urge. I liked that about us. It wasn’t about what we were doing together; it was just the fact that we were together.

She pulls her lips away from where they had made their home on my forehead. I was a little put down to see them go, but I knew that there was probably no way that we could simply stay together like that forever.

Her words break through the silence of the room. I look up to her quietly. I wasn’t surprised or confused by her question. It was a completely legitimate question. She needed new armor and she wanted to know if I wanted to join her.

“Now?” The single word passes my lips in question. Really, it was the only question I had about the whole thing. I didn’t have to think about whether I wanted to go with her or not. I knew I wanted to go and stretching my muscles would do a good thing for me. My body didn’t like being in bed when I was injured. My muscles liked to tense up and it took a lot of walking and stretching to get myself feeling halfway decent. So, if I could keep myself from getting all cinched up, then I wouldn’t have to worry about it later.

“I’m up for anything. Just say the word—I could use a walk to stretch my legs” I smile to her quietly, pulling myself up to kiss her forehead lightly. Now that the bed was bigger, we had more room if we wanted to lie out. Of course, we didn’t really need that much room. We had made due with the single bed the first night we had taken refuge here. It was nice now; I could stretch my legs across the bed and not have to worry about them hanging off. It was a simple and stupid thought; just another crazy idea that popped into my head from time to time.

“On the way you can talk to Focus…If it’s on the way I mean” I look to her a moment before looking to the bed beneath us. Maybe I was taking charge now? I had no idea where we were going so why was I offering up more ideas and options for what we could do? She was in charge; she had the lead. I shake my head, a quiet sigh on my lips. “Sorry” I mutter the word quietly, pulling a hand through my hair. I knew that she wouldn’t take my apology. It was very unlikely that I got to enjoy her accepting one of my apologies. Hell, I wasn’t sure if I should have been apologizing. Many times she didn’t think I didn’t do anything wrong when I thought that I had done the greatest of atrocities. She just shook her head or smiled, telling me not to worry about. This time, like all the others, I would just have to wait and see.

(Sorry about the wait. I got very distracted playing Fallout 3 tonight. I have to be up and out the door by 11 in the morning. I should be able to post before I leave but I’m not making any promises. My sister and I are taking a trip up to the capital for a visit with an old friend so I’m not sure how long we’ll be. I’ll be past three or four for sure. Sorry for the inconvenience!)

What if we did stay in the facility? What if we stayed in the safety it provided and didn't try to risk our lives on the rest of our journey to the surface? There was no way of knowing whether we were really going to make it up there without getting killed and yet if we stayed here there it would be almost certain we would survive for as long as we lived.
We could live together the way we were now. Cuddling, kissing, and holding one another silently with nothing but love to be shared between the both of us. Wouldn't that be better than trying to reach an ultimately impossible goal?

I asked myself these questions as I sat there with Mira in my arms. When I closed my eyes I could hear her breathing, feel her warmth against my own, and enjoy the softness of her skin beneath my lips that were resting against her forehead.
Wasn't this the life I had been dreaming of all this time?
I opened my eyes to look back towards the burnt armor in the corner. No, it wasn't. The life I longed for was a life on the surface with the cars, the normal people, the noise, the happiness, and everything else the surface had to offer. Only now Mira had made her way into my dream. Now I wanted to enjoy all of those things while holding her hand tightly with my own.
It was in that moment I became more determined than ever to get to the surface.

Her voice drew me out of my thoughts and I glanced down at her, tilting my head slightly as she seemed to think over the pros and cons of accompanying me. When she made her mind up she told me that I was the one who could decide when we left.
I nodded my head with a smile and went back to gently leaning my head against hers with my eyes closed. I wasn't quite ready to leave just yet but soon enough I'd force myself away from her comforting warmth.
A few seconds later she spoke again and I leaned back to look at her.
"We'd have to go through the lobby to get to the armory but we can head through the common room before we get back to the room." I replied to her suggestion just as she apologized. I frowned a little bit in confusion.
Why was she apologizing? Had she done something wrong?
I shook my head slightly before bringing one of my hands up to her cheek, turning her face towards me. My lips met hers and I kissed her softly. I wasn't sure what she was apologizing for but I wanted the kiss to let her know either that she had done nothing wrong or if she had, I accepted the apology for whatever it was.
When I slowly pulled away I just looked into her eyes with a warm smile.

The walk to the armory wasn't the shortest of walks but it wasn't a very long walk either. The only problem I had with going alone, though I wasn't sure if I wanted to tell Mira about what that problem was before we got to it, was the fact that we were going to pass through the conversion section of the facility. It's not that I didn't want to tell her because I wanted to hide it from her, no, it was because I didn't want to think about it.
A lot of memories were going to come back from me as we passed through there but I knew that so long as she was there with me I was going to be just fine. I'd have her hand to hold to help me through whatever painful memories awaited me.

With that thought in mind and the possibility of getting my hands on some upgraded armor I felt a happy smile come to rest on my lips. I turned my head to press a kiss against her forehead before leaning down a little more to press another one against her cheek.
"If you're up for it, let's go now. That way we can get back sooner and lay down together again." I said quietly into her ear with a small squeeze of her body. I didn't exactly want to leave the warmth of our bed nor did I want to lose the comfort of her touch but I knew that we needed to leave at some point or another. Better sooner than later.
Reluctantly I let my arms slip away from her body as I slid towards the edge of the bed, standing with a deep sigh. I then turned to hold a hand out in case Mira wanted my help getting out of bed.
I knew she probably wouldn't need my help but there was no harm in offering it.

(Well, just reply when you get back! I'll definitely be here. Strangely enough my classes, that were supposed to start today according to the calendar, don't start until next week according to my teacher)

(I came on my phone to tell you that I won't be on for a bit. I said four, but I didn't know that we would be staying this long. We haven't left Little Rock yet and it's a two hour drive. Sorry.)

(Oh? Huh... Well, I'll definitely be on. Without classes I don't really have a bedtime. I guess it depends on how tired you'll be when you get home though. I'll be here.)

(my phone has been in the car dead since last night. I finally got it charged. We are going to leave little rock in an hour or so after we get breakfast. I'm sorry, this is taking a lot longer than I thought it would)

For a while we lay there. I knew that there was a lot that we could have been doing. We could have been resting or packing or doing a million other things. Instead, we decided that it was best just to sit in each other’s arms, listening to the quiet sound of our breathing. She leans on me and I lean on her, each of us huddling together for warmth. We enjoy each other fully. The fact that we can simply sit in one place and be happy with each other is enough to make me wonder if getting to the surface is that be of a deal. I mean, I knew it was for the both of us, but we were safe right here where we were. I had this feeling that she was thinking the same thing as I was. I watched as her eyes drifted in and out for a while. She was thinking quite intently about everything.

All of a sudden she pulls herself out of her thoughts. She speaks and I can’t help but sigh. Apparently, the armory was in the completely opposite side of the facility than the common room. It would cause for more walking in the long run, but I wasn’t sure I cared much about that. We could do whatever it was she wanted. I would be there, right by her side like a loyal little lap dog. It wouldn’t matter to me whether we walked out of this building or stayed here forever. Whatever we did I would be there for her.

I sit there for a moment, thinking. It was a very hard thing to not do in the place we were in. A deep breath rose in my chest as I watched in silence. How would all of this played out if I hadn’t become enamored with her? Would I have kept with her like I had? Would I have even killed Finn Wood? I doubted that I would have become so enraged had she still only been an acquaintance. She would have been nothing more than another casualty. If we had still been the same team as when we first met, I probably would have just taken the Adam from Finn and left her to die myself. I had changed a lot since I met her. I wasn’t sure if it was for the better; hell, I didn’t know if I liked the idea at all. I wasn’t sure If I wanted to be a lap dog. Yes, I wanted to be in love with her and I wanted to be able to kiss her and be with her, but was following her around and acting like a love struck child be exactly the right thing for me to do? Yes, I could let her experience the feeling of a first love, but I would keep myself back farther. I would act as if this relationship was forever until it changed. I had a feeling it would change. First love for anyone never lasted; the person got bored, and there was nothing you could do to change their mind.

I wanted to be hopeful though. I wanted to be that girl again. I wanted to feel like I could have some sort of childhood. Besides, we weren’t normal. What if we were the abnormal two that made everything people said about love different. I sighed quietly to myself. I only hoped that we were the abnormal group. Once we were up on the surface, I was damn sure I didn’t want to lose her.

“I’m up for it now I guess” I smile to her, as I feel her squeeze me. I liked her a lot, I couldn’t deny that. She was the first thing down here in Rapture that had made me smile so much. A few moments later she slides from the bed, straightens herself out, and holds out a hand for me. Of course, I don’t need the help getting up, but it was nice to grab the hand again, pulling myself out of the bed. Now that I’m up and situated, I pull her quietly along towards the hallway.

“When we get back you have to promise me you’ll eat though” I turn once we make it to the door, placing a kiss on her lips. It was light and sweet, but it was enough to make me smile. Hell, everything about her made me smile.

(Gosh, I'm so sorry Dream. You have no idea T_T)

As soon as I helped her out of bed she kept her hand gripping mine gently, drawing me along with her towards the door. Only when we reached it she stopped to turn towards me, pressing a kiss to my lips. The height difference meant she had to lean up to reach my lips but she did not seem to mind. I just leaned down slightly to make it somewhat easier for her until her lips left mine.
As soon as they did I let out a soft sigh while a smile spread across my lips.
It was amazing how just one kiss from her could make all of my worries just disappear and they always did. She could make most pain and sadness disappear with just a smile like the smile I found myself admiring as she looked up at me.

"I promise." I whispered to her in response to her words about eating once we returned. Although I wasn't very hungry, for food anyway, I was not going to break the promise I made to her. Besides both of our bodies needed all of the nutrients we could give them to help with the healing process.
I took a deep breath, squeezing her hand with mine, before I stepped out into the cool air of the hallway. A small shiver ran up along my spine but the cold didn't seem to bother me as much as it used to. Not when I had Mira at my side.

I began to lead her down the hallway towards the main lobby, pushing the door open slowly for the both of us when we reached it. The inside of the lobby was still in the mess it had been left but the bodies had been moved away leaving only bloodstains where they had once laid. The door, while damaged from having been beaten down once, was bolted shut with a cross brace.
The other Sisters had made sure no-one was going to come in unnoticed even after all of the fighting.
I pushed on towards one of the doors on the opposite side of the reception desk and pushed through it, looking down the dark hallway for any kind of movement.
The facility was silent and there were no signs of life but you could never be too careful when it came to things like that.

As we headed down this hallway I tried my best to keep my eyes on the ground instead of looking up at all of the different rooms that lined the corridor. Many of the windows were cracked or completely broken and through the gaps one could see the simple beds, metal rolling carts, and large maneuverable overhead lights that belonged in a hospital or doctors office.
They were the rooms where many of the experiments had been carried out on all of the other Sisters and I back when the place was in still working.
After only a minute or two of walking along the hallway we came to the very room I had escaped from at the beginning of the revolution and I paused in the doorway, looking into the darkness.
"This is the room I got away from.." I said in a quiet voice. I shook my head though and pushed myself to continue. Now as not the time to focus on such things.

"The armory should be just further up the hallway. The supply room is just down here on the left, if you want to pass by it on the way back." I made motions with my hands in the directions the two rooms were.
The supply room door was closed and bolted with a heavy duty lock but at this point that was about as secure as a piece of cardboard with the word 'lock' written on it hung on the door handle. An easy fix.
It surprised me that the supply room had not been broken into by the other Sisters but then I realized why; they did not want to venture into this part of the facility. Not for long.
Not when it held the type of memories it did.
Hell, I didn't even want to be here but I knew the future of our journey depended on me being properly equipped to deal with every situation head on so that Mira could make off with the more tactical approach.

She promises me that she’ll eat once we got back. I doubted that she was hungry by the way she spoke, but I knew that we both needed it. I wasn’t really all that hungry either, but I would do whatever I had to do to get back to health sooner. A side effect of living in Rapture was a small stomach. Really, if you didn’t get over being hungry soon after you started out in this place you were a goner. I was already used to not eating much, so the switch when I left home wasn’t a hard one for me.

Since my weapon had been broken and left in the street, I had nothing to grab on the way out. I have the hand to hold hers without having to fiddle with a weapon. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, but I follow her out in silence. I’m not sure where we’re going. I mean, I know we’re going to the armory, but where in the building that is I’m not sure. I take slow steps, following easily behind her. She if very lost in her thoughts and memories so I simply let her be. I was there for her if she needed me, but I was also didn’t want to start talking and aggravate her. I wasn’t sure how she was going to act when we got into places that she remembered.

We make it into the lobby to find that the door had been jammed and the bodies removed. That was good; I didn’t have to worry about stepping over anything or tripping this time around. It seemed so different now that there was only blood on the floor. Once you came back to a place like this after something like a big battle, you could always see it in a different light. There was so much different about this place. The chairs that had been sitting in the corner were now either broken or gone. The desk had a big hole in it. I wasn’t sure where it came from. I look over the room as we walk, but soon she leads me out of here and through another door.

As we walked down the hall I noticed that she wasn’t embracing these memories. Just like in the apartment, she tried to shut out as many of them as she could. I could connect with her on that level. I understood how it was to feel like you can’t look up without seeing something you didn’t want to. Of course, I didn’t want to even think about what kind of testing they did to her. What could they have been testing on these poor little girls? The one girl I had seen while I was high on my Adam wasn’t something I wanted to wish upon anyone. The fear that was in her voice and the scream. I take in a slow breath; I understood completely.

She stops quietly at one of the rooms, peering into the darkness in silence. She watches for a moment before speaking. I look into the room curiously. There were surely a lot of things going on in this place when the civil war broke out. If this had really been the place she had escaped from, then it would have held many memories for her. I had come to a stop behind her, but soon, the slack in my arm is no more and I am pulled forward. I turn my head as I pass, very curious as to see what all could be inside these rooms. Most of the lights were off and if there was one it flickered on and off where you couldn’t really get a good view of the place.

She gives me directions of different things in the area. It’s almost like I’m some sort of tourist in a big city like Paris or New York. She speaks quietly and soon she is silent once more. She continues on down the hallway and I follow along.

“You know…I’m here right? No matter what, I’m here for you”I had been silent this entire time. It was strange for me to speak now, since I really had no comments before.I felt that I needed to let her know that I was here if she needed me. I smile, but she’s walking ahead so she doesn’t see it. I didn’t have to say anything more than that. If she needed me emotionally, I would be there for her. If she needed to talk or cry, I was there for her. I sighed quietly, shaking my head as my eyes fall to the ground. I owed her a lot; she had been there for me when I needed her. There was no reason I couldn’t return the favor.

Even with all of the memories that were flying through my head Mira must have noticed the somewhat distance look in my eye. After a long period of silence she spoke and I turned my head to look at her as we walked down the hallway. There was something to say in the way she said those words to me. A level of sincerity that made something deep inside me shift. Like my feelings for her deepened even more, if that was possible.
"I know Mira, thank you." I whispered back to her with a smile on my lips that I glanced over my shoulder with so she could see. I truly did appreciate her being there for me.
It was something I had never really had before; someone I could rely on to be there for me. Though happiness and sadness.

Finally we came to the room that we set out to find and I looked down at the door handle for a second or two. Through the door in front of us was such a huge collection of memories I wasn't quite sure I wanted to face.
I wasn't sure how I was going to react to them either.
A soft sigh passed my lips and I straightened up, reaching out to take the handle. With a small turn the door opened and I pushed it open.

The room was lined with diving suits of all shapes and sizes though many of them seemed to veer towards the petite female frame. Off to the left was a rack filled with the signature metallic spheres that had become the symbol of Big Sisters in Rapture. On the right was another rack filled with the armor plates that constructed the suit of the protectors. As the final piece of the armor the oxygen tanks were lined up in a corner ready to be outfitted onto the backs of those who had all the other pieces put together.
Most of the room was dimly lit but in the center there was a bright spotlight shining down on a square of metal that was located more or less in the middle of the room.
As I slowly walked into the room I glanced around, searching for a suit that would fit me. Every ounce of my being hated this place. My mind had to more or less shut itself down in order to avoid getting overwhelmed by the memories associated with this room.
I could remember the day I was outfitted like it was just yesterday. The way I was forced to stand in the center in little more than my undergarments as they poked and prodded at my body to make sure I was ready.
Then I just remember the diving suit being fitted, then the armor plating, and then all the smaller pieces until finally they placed my helmet over my head and I was left in the semi-darkness I became used to in the years to follow.

Soon the memories became a little bit too much for me to handle and I found myself plastered to one spot just looking around. No matter where I looked my mind was teleported to the past. Darkness, hands prodding me, only the shapes of white coats moving through the shadows to keep me company as I was transformed from an at least somewhat normal-looking girl to the most dangerous creature in the whole of Rapture.
Quickly I shook myself out of it though and I put all of my focus onto figuring out what I needed.
"I-I need..uhm.. A helmet, could you get me one?" I asked her as I started towards the diving suits hanging on the wall. Anything to get my mind away from what had happened here so long ago.

Many of the suits could have fit me but I knew I was going to need the tightest fit possible because of the additional weight I would be carrying with the new metal plates as opposed to hardened leather ones.
Finally I picked one out and reached out to take the dark tan colored outfit, slinging it over my shoulder as I moved around towards the other shelves for the rest of the suit. It was pretty easy to put together once you had the under-armor at hand.
Soon enough I had every piece of armor I needed and I headed towards one of the empty tables, setting everything down.
"I expected these pieces to be a lot heavier." I noted with a tone of surprise as I glanced over at my companion.

She looked back at me and smiled, thanking me in a low whisper. I watched her silently, knowing that was probably all she could muster at this point. I felt bad; I felt really bad for bringing up the idea of upgrading her armor. Of course the idea had probably been inevitable, I still felt bad for being the one to bring it up. She was going through much more than I had at the house. I had expected this when she first told me that we were in the place where she was made.

I stop a moment, scrunching up my nose in thought. Made wasn’t the right word. She had been made, in a way, but not really. She was mad into the person she was now, yes, but nothing more. It wasn’t like she was born here—no she had a life before all this. Made wasn’t the right word, but I wasn’t sure what was either.

I looked up to realize that I had been left in the hallway. We had been right outside the door, but I still kick myself for being so foolish. Stupid thoughts always seemed to drift into my head when I was worried. I didn’t like the idea. I didn’t like any of the things that were sifting through my mind right now.

I pushed them all away as I walked into the room. I watched her as I came to a stop. She was looking around, her mind flitting with memories that I couldn’t even begin to imagine. There was so much going on I didn’t know what to do. I just stood there and watched as she spun through the many memories that her mind had to offer her.

Soon, however, she pushes herself away from the memories. She is here for something and she wants to get out of here as soon as possible. She asks me to go get a helmet and I clear my throat, nodding silently.

“Sure” I squeak the quiet word as I start towards the large rack of helmets. They were all shaped the same and seemed to be mostly the same. If there was a difference that I needed to know about then I didn’t. I came to a stop, looking at them all. They all looked alive, but different in small ways. Some had dents where others didn’t, some looked bigger, and others just seemed to be shaped oddly enough that it didn’t look the same, but it really was. All the thinking had my mind confused. I didn’t want to be wrong, but I didn’t know if I would be wrong either.

Instead of thinking anymore I reach out, grabbing the first helmet that my hand is placed on. I yank it up and off the rack, only to have it come tumbling to the ground, dragging me along with it. It makes an oddly dull thud as it hits the ground and I grunt. I hadn’t expected the helmet to weigh as much as it did. Really, it was in-between the lines of weighing a lot and being just at the bearable mark. Either way the prospect of having the wear it on your head made my shoulders hurt just thinking about it. I pick myself up off the floor, trying to stop my face from going red from my stupidity. Of course, when I look up her mind is elsewhere and I sigh, hoping that she hadn’t absently seen my failure.

I watch her, arms filled with different bits of plating and protection, walking towards a table not too far away. I look down at the helmet, using both hands to pick it up from where it fell to the ground. I grunt, feeling a pain in my side. I ignore it. Really, it was quite embarrassing. She could walk around, move normally, and carry all of it on her without one problem it seemed, and I was having problems with the helmet.

I make it over to the table, placing the small orb on the metal. She speaks and I look over to her, cheeks flashing a deep shade of crimson. She commented on the weight and I couldn’t help, but give a half laugh.

“Yeah, it’s not too bad” I mutter the words, looking away from her. If she started laughing I didn’t want to be looking at her. It was inevitable that I flush even more if that was the case. “I wouldn’t want to wear it though” My voice is little more than a whisper. I can’t help the small choked laugh as I trace the helmet with my hand.

As I approached the table with most of the armor plating draped over my shoulders I noticed Mira coming towards the table with both her hands holding the helmet she had chosen. It was hard to choose the wrong helmet when it came to the ones that fit best. They were all designed and made to fit the same sized neck-piece no matter the size of the Sister wearing it.
When I mentioned the fact that the armor was lighter than I had thought it was going to be, she flushed and started to laugh. I glanced over at her with an expression of utter confusion. What was funny about what I had said?
Whatever it was though I couldn't help but let a smile come to rest on my lips. Hearing her laugh, seeing her blush, and watching her almost shyly run her fingers along the details crafted into the helmet she had chosen was absolutely adorable.
"It was pretty hard to handle at first, especially seeing as they hadn't started on the strength enhancing tonics they fused into me at the time." I explained with a little giggle at the memory of my first time wearing the suit.
I remembered waddling around like a child that had just learned how to walk. Quite embarrassing really.

Very quickly I went over all the different parts of the armor to make sure I had everything that I needed. I used my hand to place each piece, mentally without really lifting the plating from the table. My hand came to rest on my shoulder, forearm, hips, but when it came to rest on my stomach I paused.
With all of the memories that passed through my mind and the focus I had to put into ignoring them, my mind forgot that my under armor was pretty severely torn.
I could feel the skin of my stomach through the tears in the suit.

With a glance down at myself I realized, with a bit of trepidation, that I was going to need to change much more than just my diving suit. I glanced around the room and noticed some packing crates that were pushed into the opposite corner of the room. I walked across to the boxes and pulled them open with one hand, peering into the boxes to make sure they were the objects I was looking for. Thankfully I was right.
With my one free hand I reached into the box and pulled out the undergarments they required us to wear beneath our diving suits. A pair of simple boxer-like underwear and a light sports-type bra that neither kept me warm nor covered all that much. It was more for comfort than anything else.

I walked back to the center of the room again and paused once I got there, taking a moment to glance towards Mira with a bit of color coming to my cheeks. I parted my lips for a moment but I found I couldn't quite speak. There was something too embarrassing about the words that wanted to pass my lips.
"I need to change. Do you want to leave or...?" I felt my cheeks deepen in color just a little bit though the look on my face was quite simply my questioning her. Though there was embarrassment in the act of changing in front of someone, it was not something that I was going to go out of my way to avoid.
What was the point? Even not taking into account the fact that we were both girls, we loved one another.

Regardless of her answer I started to tear off the remainder of my burned suit, finding it ripped quite easily now that the fabric had been weakened by the fire. With ease I tore it all off and I was left in the singed undergarments underneath, vulnerable to anything and everything.
It felt a little bit strange being completely unarmored. Even my under armor provided more protection than what I was wearing now.
The cool air of the facility made goose bumps run up along my arms but I didn't feel as cold as I usually did.
"It doesn't bother me either way.." I added quietly as I stood there looking at her quietly, my new clothing in either hand.

I can see out of the corner of my eye that she is smiling. I’m not sure if she even knew what I had done over in the corner, or if the flustered way I moved around was making her smile. I didn’t question her, for fear of having to tell her what had happened. Of course, it was probably much more comical seeing it than hearing about it.

I watch the helmet a little longer before she starts talking. I assume that it’s just to break the silence that pressed between us. It was sad how much I got lost in my own little world like I was in. I look up to her, tilting my head lightly. I start to stare at her, a small smile coming on my lips. I had never thought about how many different gene tonics and plasmids that she probably had in her. She didn’t use her plasmids in the flashy way that most people did. It was easy to forget that she did have so many plasmids that could end your life in one very short time span. It was horrifying really, but it was all just a part of that charm that she had. She was so sweet and calm towards me, you couldn’t believe that she would kill something. But she did. She killed a lot of somethings. I didn’t know why I wanted to put her apart from the rest of the people down here. Maybe it was because she wasn’t a monster like the rest of us. She didn’t deserve what had happened to her.

I looked up to her after a while. She had spoken to me, which is what had called me out of my thoughts. It took me a moment to process what she had said and in that time I stood there, looking at her with a slightly dumbfounded look on my face. Then when what she said finally circulated in my mind enough to understand, I flush. She probably thought I was acting like an idiot; I really was.

If I hadn’t been so flustered and red, I probably would have answered her a little differently than I had. It wasn’t that I was afraid to look at her, or I felt it was awkward for me to be in the room. It would have been very easy for me to simply cover my eyes and make a joke out of it, but my mind wasn’t there.

“I-I think I’ll wait outside” I couldn’t keep my eyes from dancing across her skin before I turned. I kicked something on the floor on the way out, but I didn’t bother to see what it was. I was acting like a complete fool! What was so wrong with me today? My cheeks burned as I stepped out into the hall, closing the door quietly behind me. I press my cool hands to my cheeks, pushing myself onto a nearby wall and sliding down it.

“You’re an idiot” The words flow easily from my lips as I pull my knees up to my chest, letting my head fall forward onto them. I played with my hands, trying to pull the embarrassment out of my face. The more I was around her the more she made me sensitive to my emotions. I would have never been as flustered at stupid things like this before! Yes, my pride might have been hurt a little by falling on the ground like I had, but nothing more would have come from it. I took in a slow breath, closing my eyes and listening to the heartbeat in my ears. “What’s wrong with you?” There had to be something else going on. It couldn’t just be me. I didn’t want to think that I might have been changing in any way. I felt like I was falling back to when I was fifteen or sixteen! My foolishness was outrageous.

I remembered a time, far in the distant reaches of my memory, when I was more or less unaltered. A small child barely 12 when I got into the program at first. The scientists who looked me over though I wouldn't make it through the program but because all of their experiments had been failures, they were desperate enough to take me in. At that time I was probably the smallest of all the others who had been signed into the program with me.
Being small meant a lot of teasing came my way but at the same time it was my size that led me to become friends with Focus and the others. They took me in, protecting me from those who teased me, and taught me how to life worked in the facility.
When I was the first person to survive the main conversion process, I immediately became even closer to the others.
Now I looked at myself in the mirror and I could hardly recognize myself save for the color of my eyes and my hair. Though really whenever I looked in the mirror all I saw was the metallic sphere with a glowing red visor. I guess that's the ultimate change in appearance isn't it?

My mind drifted back to the present as the silence of the room reminded me that I was more or less in the middle of a conversation with someone. I made a silent promise to myself that I was going to do everything I could to stop from zoning out the way I had become quite accustomed to doing ever since we got here. As my mind came back to reality so did my admiring gaze upon my companion.
I stood there waiting for Mira's reply to my question I watched her carefully. At first she just remained motionless there looking at me with confusion in her expression but then she realized what I was insinuating with my question. Her cheeks flushed and she seemed to find herself flustered by the whole situation.
I frowned a little bit, though it was a bit more of a confused frown than anything else, at her reaction. Was it that much of a big deal for her to see me bare?

Quickly she excused herself from the room and I nodded my head as she said she would wait outside for me to get changed. What could I do? It wasn't like I was going to stand there and tell her to watch me. That thought alone almost made me giggle at the pure stupidity behind the notion. Not only would that be extremely out of character for me but I doubt it would have been much of a show for her either, so to speak.
It wasn't like I had the kind of curves to offer that she did. Not even close. Unfortunately my body hardly matured into the feminine shape it could have, probably the fault of both my genetics as I imagined my parents were both quite lean people and the altered childhood I experienced as a Little Sister.
Huge amounts of Adam can have very strange effects on the body.

Once she was out of the room and the door closed behind her I began to change out of my singed clothing and into my fresh undergarments and diving suit. The brief moment of complete bareness was at the same time freeing and embarrassing. I was glad when I pulled the garments on and I was once again covered with clean fabric as opposed to the torn and burnt clothing that now lay discarded on the floor.
Next I pulled myself into the tight diving suit, finding it was a very close squeeze to get into the thing. If there had ever been a time where I looked down at myself and saw what few curves I had to offer it was right now.
The suit fit me quite nicely actually and I found myself looking up and down along my frame. I had almost forgotten what I looked like beneath my armor.

Quickly I snapped myself out of my moment of narcissism and headed towards the door behind which Mira had closed herself in the hallway. I knocked against it lightly at first and then pulled it open, peering out into the corridor where my companion was sat leaning against the wall.
"I'm done changing if you want to come in now. It's a bit cold out in the hallway." As I spoke there was a happy but shy smile on my lips.
This new outfit made me feel a little bit self-conscious but I knew that feeling would only last until I got the armor plating on. Then I'd be back to my somewhat frightening appearance as a Big Sister only this time I was wore the upgraded later version of my old suit.

I sat in the silence of the hallway, thinking about so many things. They mostly centered on how I was acting so much like a child. I wasn’t sure if that was just me or if something was actually wrong. I hadn’t acted myself in so long I wasn’t even sure what that was. I had changed so much in the past few years, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to go back. I didn’t want to be that weak little girl that let her father beat her because she felt like there was nothing to do. I didn’t want to be the girl that helped twenty or thirty little kids but couldn’t even help her own mother.

I take in a slow breath, opening my eyes to look at the green cloth on my legs. It was so very true that I had changed; I could not deny that, but these strange flustered ideas and rosy cheeks just didn’t seem to be me. I didn’t want to think about how cliché I could sound. Under that hardened exterior was there something more? I scrunch up my nose in a smile, giggling quietly to myself. No—that was not me. I was Mira and nothing more. I acted just however; maybe I was just going insane.

The sound of the door opening in front of me makes me look up. She was clothed now in something that could protect her far better than the ripped up under armor that she had been wearing. That was good, I could trust that she would be ready to fight if need be once we got out of this place.

“Okay” I speak quietly as she tells me I can come back inside. I picked myself up off the floor as carefully as I could. I didn’t want to risk hurting myself like I had earlier. As I pulled myself up, I looked to my arms that were covered in little Goosebumps. I hadn’t even noticed the chill until she said something. I had been too much caught in my own thoughts to notice.

I walked toward her and I could tell that she was happy with the new armor. That happiness mixed with something else, but I wasn’t sure what it was. It looked almost as if she worried about how she looked. I can’t stifle the giggle as I walk through the door, hooking my arm around her and pulling her in with me. She was in a Big Sister suit, how could she look besides menacing? If she thought she looked stupid, she was mistaken.

“Looks good” I smile to her, leaning in and pressing another light kiss to her forehead. It was quite the challenge for me since I had to get onto my tippy toes to do it. Sometimes I didn’t like how much taller she was than me. A few inches I might have been able to handle, but she was almost six feet tall! There was a great comparison between the two of us. Really, it made me feel really short, even though I was probably average height for someone my age. “You need to get shorter” I speak through a half-laugh as I continue to pull her farther into the room until we are back in front of the metal table. She still had to put the armor plates on so I pulled my arm away and stepped back so she had the room that she needed to move around. If this armor went on like the other stuff did then she wouldn’t have any problem getting it on. I wasn’t particularly sure about this whole armor thing. I had never even seen a Big Sister up close until we met. Not only that but I had never worn any armor before either. As strange as it sounded in a war zone, I hadn’t. It was either too heavy, being used, or not anywhere to be found.

Armor was very uncommon in Rapture. If you couldn’t kill someone without needed protection then you would end up dead anyway. Of course that was different for people like Echo. She had a little girl to protect and when she fought off splicers, she fought off five or ten at a time by herself. No one could do that without armor and I was very glad that she had it. That diving suit had saved her life so many times. The metal armor would be even better. She wouldn’t have to worry about spider splicers unless they got in-between the plates.

“So what happens if we come across water?” I wasn’t sure where the question had come from. I wasn’t even thinking about anything related to the broken tunnels that connected many of the areas. I mean, she had her air tanks, yes, but what did I have? Nothing. Now that I got to thinking about it, I frowned quietly, shaking my head. I knew how to swim, but once one of those tunnels filled up and I was inside I was a goner. The pressure alone could kill me. “Eh, forget I said anything” I didn’t even want to think about the chances now. It was a surprise I hadn’t been killed before. Come to think of it, I had never met water besides the leaking that happened in The Drop.

My look of uncertain self-consciousness must have been very plainly visible on my face because the moment Mira saw me in full, she giggled at me as if I were being silly. This caused my cheeks to flush but at the same time it made me smile. I was glad to know that she didn't mind the fact that I wasn't exactly the curvaceous model that seemed to appear in every single romance novel ever to exist. Sure after the fall of Rapture there wasn't much choice as far as appearance went but still.. I wasn't exactly drop dead gorgeous now was I? At least not compared to her. She was something on a completely different level of attractiveness.
"I'm glad you think so." I replied with a shy smile to her words about my suit. It felt good to be complimented. Compliments were probably last on the list of things that came my way with insults and bullets being the top contenders.

She then leaned up to press a kiss to my forehead which proved to be quite the challenge considering the height difference between the two of us. Yet again she was forced to stand on the very tips of her toes in order to reach the place she wanted to kiss as the height difference between us was more or less 4 inches. Thankfully I had not yet put on the heavy boots that would then increase my height by about 2 inches from the raised heel.
I giggled at her comment and nodded my head slightly.
"I know, I'm sorry." I replied in a playful tone as she pulled me along towards the table where the rest of my armor lay waiting for me.

My height was something I had never really considered as that significant. At least not until I started to come across many of the inhabitants of Rapture and Mira who, although she was not the shortest person I had ever seen, made the difference quite clear whenever I made to kiss her while standing up.
That lack of thought came from the fact that all Big Sister's were pretty much the same size both in height and in shape. The vast majority of us, at least the ones that I had grown up with, were lanky and somewhat frail looking.
The shape of our figures came from a childhood of consuming nothing but Adam which resulted in our bodies growing thin while still growing tall. Perhaps not abnormally thin and tall but we certainly weren't your average female.

Once we reached the table she unhooked her arm from around mine and allowed me some space so that I could move without bumping into her. Many of the components of the armor were the same as the leather plated armor I wore before so putting the whole suit on was going to be a breeze. It was just the additional weight that worried me most. Of course I had no doubt in my mind that I was going to be able to handle it but I wondered whether, if only for the first few days, I was going to find my movement speed somewhat diminished. Would I be able to keep up with Mira's speed and agility or was I going to weigh her down?
I shook my worries away with a sigh and started on the job of sliding into my new armor.

Her question came out of the blue and caused me to glance to the side where my companion was stood watching me. I bit my bottom lip slightly as I considered the possibility of us encountering water on our journey. It wasn't all that common for an entire area to become flooded, as even with the revolution Rosie's still worked to keep the place riveted together, but at the same time there was still that small chance we might.
I frowned at the mere thought.
"If we meet water.." I trailed off as I tried to think of something to tell her that didn't end with 'we both end up drowning'.
However a sudden memory stopped my thought process cold and a smile came to spread across my lips.
"Hang on! Wait! I know!" I suddenly sputtered with excitement as I started away from the table and towards the lines of oxygen tanks lined on their respective side of the room.

I must have looked a little bit foolish wearing only the lower half of my armor but the thought that reached my mind was much more important than being fully armored. As I reached the tanks I started to rifle through them carefully though I pushed aside the ones that didn't have the feature I was looking for. It took me a minute or two but then I found what I was looking for.
I picked up a tank, medium sized and not overly bulky, and brought it back towards the table with another object in my other hand.
"After I was outfitted, they discovered the very same problem. If there was a tunnel collapse then the Little Sister often drowned while the Big Sister was left alive. So they developed these for the Big Sisters to carry around with them." As I explained the short little anecdote I placed what looked to be a mouthpiece with a small fist-sized capsule attached to it.
"It's a miniature oxygen tank that allows one to breathe for about 4 minutes. Not much but enough to swim to the nearest entrance hatch." I added with a bit of a proud smile.
I was just glad I had remembered.

It hadn’t even occurred to me until I looked down to see bare feet that she hadn’t even put her shoes on. I groaned quietly, leaning my head back in defeat. That would add even more height to her which would make it where I couldn’t reach her forehead if I wanted to. I sighed quietly, watching her as she playfully apologizes. I can’t help the smile as I watch her. She was very good at making me smile.

A deep breath pulls into my lungs as she thinks over the possibilities. There were so many things that could happen, but there was so little we could do to stop them. She’s only got half of her armor on and I feel kind of bad. I drew her away from what she was doing, but she seems pretty excited. I watch her curiously as she moves around the large tanks of oxygen that are on the wall. I watch her silently, wondering if she’s actually going to try and give me one of those large things. There would be no way I could carry it! I watch her intently for a moment before she grabs something smaller off of one of the shelves.

It was a curious idea, but a very smart on too. They probably lost Sisters in the first few tunnel collapses. It was probably far too expensive to steal more girls and change them like they changed the first. For that reason, they needed a way to keep them safe. I take the small tank in my hand. It wasn’t really heavy like I assumed the one she was carrying would be. I looked it over silently. It wasn’t anything flashy, just a dull little tank and a small mouth piece that you put in your mouth to breathe. It was probably going to be a life saver though. It was good to know that I had a little bit of a chance. If a tunnel had collapsed or collapsed while we were in it then I would have a few minutes to get out of the area before I died.

“Thanks. Smart idea you know.” I pull my backpack off my back, setting it on the table. I look it over a moment before pulling on the strings. It was very dirty now. There was blood and dirt all over the poor thing. I was just lucky that nothing in the back had been broken in the million times that I let myself slide down a wall or just fall on my back. I place the small thing in my pack. I would have enough air to at least get it out before I drowned. I place it near the bottom so it doesn’t crush anything. I look over the things that I had left in my pack. There wasn’t much really. In the fighting I had used up most of my Eve reserves and I had no Adam left. I had a little bit of food, but I would have to look on our way topside to make sure that we had enough food to make it.

I pull on the drawstrings, clipping off the flap that hung on my back. I do the same routine of putting the pack on my back and yanking the straps tight. I smile, looking up to Echo. I was grateful that she could protect me so much. She seemed to always have a plan for sticky situations and if she didn’t then she found some way to get us out of the area safe enough.

“You don’t know how grateful I am…but hurry up so we can get back to the room” I giggle quietly, pulling my arms up to wrap around me. The short sleeves of the dress weren’t helping keep out the draft that pushed quietly through the room and across my arms.

There were always dangers that lurked in every corner of Rapture and they didn't all necessarily have anything to do with the Splicers themselves. Tunnel collapses, building collapses, broken advertisement boards, and pretty much anything else that wasn't tethered to the ground with steel cables. The whole of Rapture was a death trap with so many different ways of being killed that a person could practically make a choice on the matter.
I was glad that I could think quickly enough to get us out of at least some of the messy situations we were probably going to get ourselves into on the remainder of our journey. Mira was no pushover herself, not in the slightest, but I had been designed to survive everything that Rapture had to throw at me.

She took the small oxygen breathing apparatus from me and examined it for a few seconds, looking over the object with a kind of admiring curiosity. She then pulled her backpack from her shoulders to put the apparatus away, thanking me and telling me what a smart idea it had been.
I quickly nodded my head with a smile before I turned back towards the table with the remainder of my armor still laid out on it, moving back to finishing up with the job I had stopped in the middle of.
As Mira sorted out the items in her pack I pulled my new breastplate on and tightened the straps on the side, breathing in deeply to make sure it was tight enough while giving me enough room to breathe.
It was a perfect fit.

Mira's voice came from next to me and I glanced over at her. She spoke of getting back to the room. I slowly nodded my head, not noticing the fact that she had crossed her arms until a second or two later, but when I did I quickly gave her an apologetic smile.
"I'm sorry, you're right. I'll hurry." I said as I turned back to the job at hand, fitting the forearm plating and then the elbow pads.
As the final few pieces I pulled on the tight gloves, slid the surprisingly comfortable oxygen tank onto my back where the suit was designed to carry it, and grabbed my helmet off the table.
Now that I was fully armored I felt quite confident; like I could take on the world!
It was a bit of a silly thought really.

With my free hand I reached out to wrap my arm around her waist below her side, drawing her gently against me. I leaned down to press a small kiss to the top of her head before smiling at her warmly.
"Alright, I'm ready now. Thanks for coming with me Mira." I whispered quickly before leaning down a bit so I could brush my lips against hers in a kiss of thanks for having accompanied me when she could have stayed back in the room under the warmth of the covers. I truly did appreciate her coming with me though.
I felt as though I would not have been able to handle coming back to this place without her presence to comfort me through my memories. Not only that but I probably would not have remembered to take a breathing apparatus if it wasn't for her.

Although I couldn't exactly keep her warm as much as I would have liked, as my armor was still warming up to my body temperature, I decided my walking with her close to me was better than nothing. At least then the cool air of the hallway wouldn't surround both of us completely.
So with a small smile on my lips, the smile that never seemed to leave whenever I was alone with the woman I knew I loved with every ounce of my being, I started towards the door at a calm pace.
We weren't in much of a hurry aside from the fact that we both wanted to get back to the room as soon as possible.
"We'll stop at the supply room so you can look for anything you might need. There probably isn't much left behind from the looting that went on but it's still worth checking out." I said as I pushed the door open and led us out into the hallway.
Turning left we began on the ten minute walk back towards the room with the only stop being at the supply room.
When we reached it I easily tore the padlock off the door finding that the metal had corroded with time. The door swung slightly open and I stepped aside so Mira could get into the room.

I had to say that I was a rather cold natured person. Even when I was a small girl up topside I had a way of getting the chills even if it was spring. My mother used to bundle me up in two or three jackets to keep me warm. The drafts of Rapture were no different. Anytime I got into open rooms or hallways, the draft would give me the chills. If I was lucky I didn’t start to shiver; I had a bad problem with shivering too. It was especially bad when you were trying to shoot tings and the cold caused you to move. I didn’t like the cold and any chance I got to get away from it I did.

She made it into her suit with ease. It was good that she fit into one of them; of course, I didn’t doubt that all of these Sisters had pretty much the same build as the others. It just depended on their height which suit they got. Of course I was no Big Sister expert or anything. I was just making assumptions from what I saw from the different suits on the walls.

I didn’t want to ask Echo too much about her past. I would be okay with just assuming this or that about all of the things that went on in this facility. She hadn’t asked about my past when we were in the apartment; I would step over no line that she hadn’t. It was only common courtesy really. If we made it topside and lived the rest of our lives without talking any more about what went on down here in Rapture, then I would be fine with that. I didn’t really want to think about what had happened here anyway, but I knew that until we made it out of here, the memories and stories of Rapture would be too bold to forget.

Once she is completely ready to do she pulls me close to her. I smile, a quiet giggle escaping my lips. It was different to have the cold metal plates pressed against me instead of the leather ones. The leather ones weren’t nearly as cold. A shiver runs up my spine and I give a shrill squeal at the feeling. It didn’t bother me really; just the shock of the old caught me off guard.

“Don’t mention it, Doll face. It wasn’t a hassle” I smile to her, my eyes closing as she pushes her lips to mine. I pull myself up higher on my toes as she kisses me, soft and sweet like always. Soon, she’s pulled away and we are starting out into the hallway in search of the Supply room. I had all confidence that she knew where we were going. She had lived here after all.

“There’ll be at least something that we can scrounge…Maybe some Eve or a new gun for me…” I take in a slow breath. That’s more what I was worried about than anything. I had lost my rolling pin early on in our journey, which wasn’t such a big deal since I had a shotgun, but now I didn’t even have it. I didn’t remember much from the fight. I remember killing a lot of Splicers and breaking my weapon on one of them. I couldn’t exactly remember who it was though. I shake my head; really I didn’t care to know. That was in the past and the point was that I didn’t have a weapon.

When we make it to the supply room, Echo pulls away from me. She looks the lock over for a moment and I’m about to tell her that I could pick the lock, but she just rips it off the door with ease. I stop, hand still in the air. She was strong, that was for sure. I giggled quiet as the door swung open and I walked inside. I couldn’t help that attraction I had for her when she did things like that. It was the simple, little things that were just so adorable to me.

“I don’t know exactly what I’m expecting to find in here” I speak simply, pulling myself into the dark room. I squint, trying to see anything around me. This room seemed even darker than the hallway just outside the only exception being the dim red and blue color glowing on the opposite side of the room. I traced my hands around the wall, looking for the small button that would turn on the lights. It takes me a moment, but I find the small panel, pushing the button.

I squint as the bright lights come on. With a quite chuckle I poke my head outside the door to motion Echo in.

“I found the lights” I smile, pulling myself back inside and turning around. The room wasn’t particularly large. There were a few metal shelves tracing along the back wall of the room, while a workbench, desk, and other cabinets and shelving were placed periodically along the walls. I couldn’t see much of what the room contained, but I knew that the good stuff would be locked away or hidden.