Won't you come out to play? [Open to All]

[rogerrabbit]

He had actually been improving, y'know. It wasn't like he had been spending the past five months lounging around and feeling sorry for himself. I mean...okay, four months of that he was, but then he went to the Halloween party! That was supposed to be an improvement, and at first, it was lots of fun. Plum was really supportive, even if she had been worried about Snow showing up. She was probably just glad to see that he was out of the house, and wearing a costume that was supposed to be funny to boot! I mean, sure, Plum's friend had been kinda rude, but it was going really well...until his costume stopped being all that fun anymore. See, some sourpuss had decided it'd be really funny to turn everyone into their costumes. Roger didn't know who did it and he really didn't care. All he knew was that he was a tree all night, and sure, that didn't sound bad, but...ohhh, it was lousy.

So for a week after, Roger locked himself in his room with whatever Halloween candy he had bought (and there was a lot...well, he had to make up for the lack of trick or treating somehow, right?) and...yeah, that was basically all he did. Oh, and watch TV. He was watching a lot of TV. Contrary to what some might think, Roger didn't really do that much, and usually when he did, it was all cartoons. Right now, however, he didn't want to do anything else, not even go out to get some coffee, at least. Nope. He was just here, and pretty sure he never wanted to leave the house and there was no way anyone was gonna make him.

[Deleted]

It took everything in Plum’s power not to lock herself away after Halloween. She was stronger than that, but thinking back to that night, she never wanted to experience anything like that ever again. She had become such an awful person. Hellgut was not a person she wanted to think about. She was horrible, truly horrible and Plum felt sick thinking about the witch’s obvious disregard for anyone else’s life other than her own. It was horrible. Simply horrible. Totally unacceptable to be that kind of person. She was not like that. She was not Hellgut. She was not that horrid person. She cared about people, she just needed to remind herself of that.

Speaking of people she cared about, she was worried about Roger. As if things couldn’t get worse for him they had and she hadn’t seen him in more than a few days. She was worried. And that was why she was here, standing at his door. She knocked and called out, “Roger are you home? It’s me, Plum.” She figured that if he was home, he might at least answer the door for her. And if he didn’t she had other ways of getting inside. She was a fairy after all.

[rogerrabbit]

Honestly, even in depression Roger could still be funny to some. It was just that he couldn't be funny intentionally anymore. For example, when he heard the knock on his door, he jumped up so high that he hit the ceiling and managed to grab onto it like a cat with claws. His candy wound up flying out in all directions and now the room was just a plain old mess. It was only as he was panting to catch up with his poor bunny rabbit heart that he registered that it was Plum's voice. It was also around that time when he remembered that he didn't have claws...and he looked down.

"Owwww," he moaned as he landed on his back, but it wasn't like...hey. How come he wasn't seeing tweeting birds or stars spinning around his head...and usually things didn't hurt all this much 'cause, you know, he was a Toon. Toons didn't feel all that much pain. They'd be sort of out of a purpose if they didn't, what with all the slapstick involving being run over by cars and stuff...

Roger's eyes bugged out. Oh my gosh, what if I'm losing my Toon powers??

Then he remembered that Plum was outside and as terrified and depressed as he was right now, he wasn't gonna be rude to his best friend in the whole world. He darted to the door, looking like as much of a mess as the room around him, what with the wide, baggy eyes and his hair hadn't been combed (believe it or not, yes, he did comb it, otherwise it stuck out like he had dealt with an electric shock) and...it was just not a pretty sight, was what he was thinking. Poor Plum having to see him like this. She was really too good of a friend.

"Uh...hey Plum," he said after opening the door. Then he picked up one of the Reese's cups from the floor and smiled weakly. "Uh, want one? It's still wrapped up, it's okay..."

[Deleted]

Plum, in comparison to Roger, was very put together. At least that was how she looked. Her hair was pulled back and she looked nice, but this of course was purely for her image. She could not afford to look the way she felt. She couldn't bring herself to look as dishelved and unhinged as she felt. It wasn't possible. And as long as she looked presentable, she felt like she could at least face the world, even if she truly didn't want to.

But as horrible as Plum felt, she didn't expect the Roger that met her at the door. She immediately was concerned. "Roger," she began, but she trailed off, not quite sure of what to say. Instead she just reached out and hugged him, just as much for him as it was for her. He must not have left for days and it wasn't helathy. It just wasn't healthy. As messed up and confused and horrible she felt, she knew that it would have been worse not to reach out to people.

"You should have called me," she told him, still hugging him. Then she pulled away and held him at arm's length to get a god look at him. "Let's get you cleaned up. You go comb your hair and find some clean clothes. While you do that, I'll clean up in here and make ypu an actual meal. You look like you could use one." She gave him a weak smile. "Don't worry, dear. It'll get better."

[rogerrabbit]

It was kind of funny how someone saying your name sadly had a way of making you feel awfully guilty. Roger sort of managed a pained/sheepish smile when Plum greeted him as well as she could. He knew he looked like an awful mess, meanwhile she looked all pretty and queenlike, and he also knew that she was too nice to let that go without a whole heap of sympathy. She had really been trying so hard to help him out, and he wanted to be a good friend and be better again, he really did. Heck, it was why he had gone to the party in the first place, and it sure as heck wasn't either of their faults that it didn't work. It was no one's fault that Roger was starting to wonder if he was ever going to be okay again.

Still, it was always good to be hugged by a friend. Even when you felt your absolute worse, nothing could stop you from enjoying a hug, Roger felt. Then when she finally said that he should have called her, he sort of shuffled his feet. "I know," he admitted. He was too tired to even list all of the excuses that he must have been dreaming up ever since he had started hiding. I just didn't feel well enough to reach the phone. I didn't want to worry you. I had nervously chewed an impossible amount of gum and the bubble resulted in me being trapped to the wall for a while there, so I really couldn't reach the phone. It wasn't like Plum wouldn't have been able to see right through them. Especially the bubblegum one...heh, that would've been funny though.

Then he sort of sighed at her instructions. "You don't have to do all of that..." he pointed out. Honestly, he had been thinking that for the past six months since Snow left. Still, he figured the least he could do was actually listen, so he made his way to his bedroom and grabbed some new clothes...heh, he had his "Charlie Brown" sweater out, he could wear that, he supposed.

Then he poked his head back out. "Seriously, you've been the best friend a guy could ask for and I haven't been all that great lately..." If he still had his bunny ears, they'd probably be drooping.

[Deleted]

Plum wasn’t one to focus on herself. Her own problems and needs came second to the needs of those around her. And even then those needs came after the needs of her Kingdom. But Roger needed a rock and Plum had determined that she would be that rock for him. She could be that person for him, even if she was moments away from having her own break down. Roger needed her and she needed to be there for him.

“I know I don’t have to,” she told Roger gently. “That’s just what friends do.” She smiled and when Roger left to go get cleaned up she turned her attention to the room. She pulled out her wand and with a little help from magic she had the room cleaned up in no time. Everything was right where it should be. And with another wave of her hand dinner started to make itself. The smell of roast beef cooking emanated through the room.

Plum turned at the sound of Roger’s voice again. “Roger darling, don’t say that. You’ve been a very good friend to me. You can’t help what you’re going through. It can’t be easy and I’m very sure I’d be the same way if our places were reversed.” Then she smiled at him. “Friends help other friends get through tough patches. It will get better.”

[rogerrabbit]

You know, Roger wasn't sure why he hadn't expected Plum to react how she did. She was just everything that was nice about people, everything that was good in a world where the girl you were in love with and were going to have a baby with was gone. Besides, there were a lot of things that you could say about Roger. He had heard plenty of people think that he was obnoxious or a handful or really needed to get a grip (to which he often wound up gripping onto their shoulders and asked, "Will this do?" with a big grin)...but he was darn protective and proud of it. And she was right. If she was going through something this awful, he would be tripping all over himself to try and make her smile again...because that was just how Roger rolled, that was what friends did...

He just didn't feel all that much like Roger lately, that was all.

He walked out, comb in his hand and a very sad smile on his face. "Yeah...yeah, you're right..." Although he was rather skeptical of the "It will get better" part of that, but Plum was rarely wrong, and if Roger didn't trust her, what was he supposed to do. "Thanks...I dunno what I'd do without ya, Plum."

[Deleted]

If only Roger knew just how awful she really felt, if that would make a difference or if they would just be miserable together. Friends supported each other no matter what and yet Plum couldn’t bring herself to burden someone else with her problems, even if they burdened her with their problems. She’d like to tell herself that it was different, but it wasn’t. Her problems weren’t really any different, but she just couldn’t bring herself to admit her own problems. Personally, she blamed her upbringing. Always having to keep up appearances for other people that she couldn’t even unleash her own problems. She kept them close to her and never let anyone know. Only the woman who raised her and the Nutcracker Prince knew her every mood and could see past the fake smiles. They would have been able to see how troubled she was, but they weren’t here and she needed to be strong for someone else. Roger needed her to be strong and not fall apart at the seams.

So, even though she too was skeptical about the ‘it will get better’ part, it was what he needed to hear even though it would be a while before things would be better for the both of them. She smiled at Roger. “I’m sure that’s not true.” She reached out and squeezed his shoulder. “I hope you like roast beef and potatoes. That’s what I’m cooking.” She gestured at the stove. “Unless you’d rather have something else. I can make anything.”

[rogerrabbit]

Roger went back into the bathroom and found that the teeth of the comb were finding some difficulty going through that hair of his. Heh...well, okay, sometimes he neglected it. He didn't need to do it so much when he was a bunny! Just a quick run through and he was pretty much set. It was one of the benefits of being a Toon. You rarely looked like anything you didn't want to look like...and he supposed that was part of the problem. He just didn't care anymore. That was usually dangerous for a Toon. Sure, they LOOKED ridiculous, but that was because they were supposed to. Ridiculous was to a Toon like Size 0 was to a model, and people loved them both (and there were a LOT less critics for Toons looking ridiculous). Roger didn't even look ridiculous. He just looked...ordinary. Plain...this got him thinking about how his Toon powers seemed to glitch up before Plum showed up, but then he heard her say that...wait, was she serious?

Figuring that his hair was about as good as it was going to get, he rushed out, looking up at Plum. "Of course it's true. I mean, sure, I've got friends, but...you're really the best friend I have here, 'specially since Eddie's not here...and really, I don't know how Eddie would be about this. He's a swell guy, don't get me wrong, but he's not always so great with the whole feelings thing," Roger explained, shuffling his feet, but...he looked perhaps a bit less sad and a bit more insistent. For a second there, it was like his sadness faded a bit...huh.

"But...yeah, yeah, that'll work...maybe some carrots too, but I can handle that..." he said, a little lost in thought. That was, until he saw that his refridgerator was pretty darn empty. His eyes bugged out. "...sheesh, I need to go shopping, I guess..." Truth was that he hadn't been eating all that much period, not just since Halloween. He just hadn't noticed until he finished up all that candy. Whoops...

[Deleted]

Plum admired that Roger could wear his heart on his sleeve. That was something she could never allow herself to do. That had been beaten out of her a long time ago. But if she could wear her heart on her sleeve she would probably look just as disheveled as Roger, though now he looked much more presentable. And much more himself.

She smiled at Roger, feeling reassured by his words. She was awful at dealing with her own feelings, but when it came to the people around her that she cared about, it was much easier to deal with their emotions. Maybe because then she could put her own issues to the side.

“You’re one of my best friends too,” she told him truthfully. She didn’t have a lot of people here to rely on. She had very few real friends actually, but many acquaintances. Before Roger she had had Door, but she was gone and Roger was here in need of a friend.

“Carrots, yes I can do that. Not a problem. Everything will be ready in a few minutes.” She turned around to check the roast in the oven when Roger mentioned his empty refrigerator. He must not have eaten a real meal in a very long time and that concerned her. “You should probably get some groceries soon. If I’d known I would have brought some things with me.”