#he doesn't care about his own stuff but he's definitely not desensitized to suffering/death/pain others undergo xD

[townofcadence]

"Visiting.... probably would be easier." Artair nods. "I have something to help people get to different worlds so they don't get lost and can get back home easy. And it'd be a lot easier if we knew what each other were talking about more visually. But ah... yeah. Our forest is less-- extensively haunted looking. That much I can say." Though far be it to say that his forest wasn't haunted or filled with its own dangers or unnatural things as well. They just.... were far more subtle. Or the danger was just in the ways that any extensive enough woods could be, with how easy it was to lose your way.

"I did think... or, well, I guess I assumed there'd be different biomes." He continues, rolling the flashlight in his palm. "Though...... living surburbia is definitely not one I've seen. Or fire hydrants plants. I guess that kind of means... probably the whole world is like this? Was it like this before the change? No, probably not, or you wouldn't point it out. So maybe where I'm from's more like before everything kinda--- changed like this." It's less a question he really expects an answer from, and more an idle musing, his hand pressing against his chin and a curled index finger just brushes his lip.

He's silent even as he feels the bubble of amusement from her, at the store. Something about it elicited the feeling and-- he honestly couldn't even guess as to what, when it was so full of bodies of people. But...this also seemed normal, at least now, for her. He doesn't comment either, until they were past the stretch of pavement.

"I guess I'm wondering how you don't get lost more often." Artair augments his question. "I mean--even regular woods are easy to get turned around in, and lose your way if you're not on a trail." A lot of people died that way even without the hotels and minimarts hungry for flesh. A search party was pretty run of the mill, but how they managed to find Thursday and everything be fine was definitely a curiosity, unless they had something special for doing so. You really didn't realize how easy--

The thoughts cut away with her laugh, and then her scream. Artair jumps, fumbling his flashlight at the sudden noise; he drops it to the grass. While bent over trying to reclaim it, he hears the answering call, and he grimaces as he pulls himself up.

"Well.... given how long it's been quiet, I don't think it's a person in danger, that's for sure." He frowns, fixing his beam forward again. "I mean they're answering you, but a real person would scream more, and maybe use some words if they thought someone was here, I'd assume. And if they thought you were something else screaming, they probably wouldn't scream back, because they wouldn't want you to figure out where they were. So....."

He considers. "....I don't think it's a person in danger still, but we could probably check it out, just in case it something else? But ah... you can do the screaming. Just give a guy a little warning." He chuckles. "I'll try to pay attention to the direction and lead us that way."

Thursday can't help but let out a laugh as Artair struggles to describe his world, especially in comparison to what he's seeing of hers in real time.

"You know what? Maybe I could go see the place you're from some time! And we could study each other's worlds. Wouldn't that be cool? I think it would be. And something else - this is only one small part of where I live. There are tons of places we haven't explored yet, simply because we just haven't. Maybe not all the woods out there look like this," she says, shrugging and smiling. "I mean, we've seen all kinds of crazy shit, like suburban neighborhoods full of identical houses and lawns and mailboxes that were all alive, and I think that was just about the scariest thing I've ever seen, if I'm honest. And, like, fire hydrants that are like plants, stop signs, just all kinds of things that aren't just dead bodies covered in mushrooms, ahahaha. But I'd love to see where you're from."

The whole spectacle with the mini market with the mass of tangled bodies and graveyard fungus atop them - not to mention the very lovely tapestry of digested body splattered within the inside of the building - quite naturally draws Thursday's attention too as they come upon it. She takes her time looking at it, not nearly as disturbed by it as Artair seems to be. She's seen this all before - perhaps not this exact scene, but many just like it. And she's seen a lot more gruesome scenes too, bodies in much fresher, and further, states of decay and depravity and dismemberment and disembowelment. Even before making such discoveries she had a stomach of iron, and by now she's become so immune to it, it's no different than looking at close-ups of Hello Kitty under a microscope. It's just part of the world she lives in and not anything upsetting to her at all.

It is fascinating how the building is calling them over to it, though, and she can't help but smirk about it. She wants to talk to Artair about it, but doesn't know how he'd feel, considering he doesn't seem to keen on the bodies all over the place, not to mention the human artwork behind the glass doors of the building. So she decides to forgo that particular conversation for now and moves away from it as he does.

At his question, she shrugs, the light of her flashlight darting around the woods as she does so. "I don't know. To be honest, I don't really pay attention. Sometimes I recall certain landmarks, other times not. This direction, in the dark? I'm not really recognizing much, ahahaha. I'm just kinda wandering around aimlessly until I find something. It's not a big deal, because I can just call one of my Officemates to come get me if I get lost. Hmm. We need that person or whoever to scream again, don't we? You know what. I've got an idea."

Cupping her hands around her mouth, Thursday takes in a breath and then hauls off and lets out an enormous scream into the woods, her voice seeming to echo and echo and echo for far longer than it should.

There's a beat of silence.

And then there comes a scream, almost undeniably in answer to hers. And it sounds just like the one everyone in the Office heard earlier.

"Ahahahahaha, someone's out here screaming on purpose," Thursday laughs, seeming totally unbothered by this alarming revelation that whatever was making that noise is sentient. "Either that or it's like, a werewolf or something and they're looking for a mate. What do you think, Artair? Should we scream again? Ahahahaha."