"Hmn." Juniper listened attentively as Ryu put forth the theory that Shokushu wasn't even situated on Earth. There was no hesitation in her work at the outlandish assertion, she kept applying deeper shadows to the figures she'd sketched onto the wall in pencil earlier, the flat planes of color beginning to resolve themselves into a number of separate bodies pressing close to one another, "That lines up with a lot of what I've managed to dig up." she said, her eyes losing focus slightly as she retreated inwardly for a few moments, "Most of them don't remember falling asleep, but none of the students can describe the island from above. The loss of personal possessions has been widely bemoaned . . . particularly from my room mate, but, as you say, there shouldn't have been an opportunity to take our luggage out from the baggage area. I've been referred to as an Earthling, and then there's the stars . . . and the lake . . ."

"I guess I'm still holding out hope that I'll find out it's more of a Bermuda Triangle type of deal than an alien world. Finding maps of the local topography have been . . . unfeasible at best." she paused a bit to regard her work for a few moments, "Though . . . if you're right . . . getting out of here is going to require some skills not available to the curriculum. Or full blown terrorism, assuming there's even a vulnerability to exploit with the seaplane."

"No worries, everything here is off the record." she smirked behind her mask, but then the quips stopped. She listened, really listened, stopping her work and setting her weight against the ladder as she looked over at the other girl. For her part, she didn't seem like she was going to jump down Ryu's throat for fraternizing among the ranks of students, more interested in the story itself. So far as Juniper was concerned, love was precious enough a thing that Ryu didn't need to make any justification to her audience, and she'd be hard pressed to take away anything that made surviving this place even marginally more pleasant.

"That's sweet." she said finally, sliding down the rungs of the ladder back down to the paint bucket, though she left the brown balanced at the top of the ladder, "I'm not sure I'd make the same claim, but I'm glad you've found someone out here. I hope . . . well, I hope nothing comes between you and your mutual happiness." she said, smiling however slightly.

"Heh, you don't ask easy questions, do you?" she said with a slight chuckle, "There's a calendar set up at the foot of my bed. Every day I wake up, the first thing I see is how much time is between me and graduation and . . . whatever that entails. Feeling the time slipping through my fingers helps keep me sharp . . . but I guess it's not really what gets me going." she said easily enough, shrugging with one shoulder. She couldn't credit it with her motivation for one very simple reason, some mornings she wanted nothing less than to curl up into a ball and cry and the ever oncomming date. Even with years to go, it was hard not to see her deadline as the end of the road, in light of her ultimate fate's occlusion.

"There is, of course, the hunt for truth. Things like tonight, it's engaging, thrilling, and it's hard not to see it as a worthy investment of time . . . but it can also be frustrating." she chewed her bottom lip behind her mask. Then, she chuckled softly to herself and shook her head.

"I guess, if I had to site any one thing as giving me the strength to keep striving, it'd be the opportunity to tweak the nose of the administration and the staff." she gestured at the wall, "If this was just about scientific discovery, I'd be content to grab a roller and a bucket of blue paint and slap up a big blue square in ten minutes flat. But, no, I've gotta go and make art." she punctuated the statement with another short burst of color, "The best moments, the ones I live for? Every so often, the stars align, and I get the opportunity to spare a student a night's torment. It's a beautiful thing to undermine the whole purpose of this place, if only for a moment."

"Of course, the real trick is getting away clean afterwards." she said with a bit of a shrug, "Still, even if I don't, it's worth it to me. They want us isolated and vulnerable . . . so it's all the more important that we show a little solidarity."

"I hope so, too .." Ryu could only do so much to keep Ishtar safe and if it wasn't for certain arrangements she made in the past, their future together would seem awfully grim. To the monsters she was a slight hindrance at best and with their uncertain fate upon graduating she doubted any of that would change for the better. For now, at least, they were together. Among masters and mistresses, angels and demons that twisted and manipulated her into whatever pet or servant they desired, be it through pain, pleasure or supernatural powers, it was a blessing to have somebody remind you of who you actually were and love you all the same.

She smirked at the next comment. Easy questions might've been appropriate back in the dorms, but out here it seemed more fitting to know who she was dealing with, what drove the determined journalist and made her unique among all the others. It was interesting to hear since quite literally their time was going to run out eventually, sooner or later they were going to leave Shokushu and with what the two suspected might happen in mind, what really was there to keep one's inner wheels going?

"Juniper Modnar against the world, who would've thought?" It was a noble effort, no doubt, one that many wouldn't have the strength to follow considering the consequences, yet she couldn't help but sound as though she were mocking the other girl. "But I'm guessing you're right once again, being able to shoulder someone else's torment, no matter the outcome for oneself, is a remarkable example of self sacrifice. I admire that in a person, especially when we look at what happens around here on a daily basis."

Ryu nonchalantly applied another series of brief spurts onto the frame of the hillside, these transitions were getting trickier by the minute, but that wasn't the only thing on her mind. "Unfortunately helping you put down this painting might be a one time thing. I'm in a .. ah, predicament of sorts."

There didn't seem to be much harm in telling Juniper about this, for all she knew the student probably had a look at her record at some point and was aware of the circumstances she was in, but if she wasn't then maybe she would like to learn more of the less enjoyable sides of the school. The amount of secrets Ryu kept were a burden to her mind and while at first she didn't think much of meeting with the other it certainly proved therapeutic. "One of the prefects I've met in my time has me on a leash, so to speak. Every week she takes a look at the list of demerit issued students and every week, regardless of whether I'm on it or not, she orders me to the basement where I'll serve my time."

For a moment she stopped what she was doing, reliving the twisted nightmares of her life. "The duration never varies, but the nature of it does. As long as I keep in line, don't break any of the rules, that sort of thing .. at the end of the week she'll .." Ryu swallowed hard, taking a moment to think it through. "She forces pleasure on me. Week after week .. after week .. because if I don't obey and do as she says she'll punish me instead. I'm afraid that if I ever get caught red handed or proven guilty by association I'll fare far worse than I already have."

Her gaze swung back to Juniper. "I'm sorry if that bothers you, I just .. don't think anyone else would care to listen."

"Heh, anyone who knew me back home, for starters." Juniper responded with a short laugh as Ryu accused her of squaring up with the world, "I have something of a history for burning bridges. That said, I don't think of it as self sacrifice, I'm out here every night, I've accepted the possibility of getting caught as the price of playing the game at my level. Interceding on the behalf of another is a community building excercise, it tells the victim that they're not alone, that there are people out there willing to fight, it's a glimmer of hope for those in a bleak place. A full ten percent of use know what's out there, but, unless one of the Guests intercede, most remain isolated so that the school can obfuscate the issue. Did you hear about what happened to Vikky Nyberg?" she shook her head, "Someone's got to be willing to tell them that they're not crazy."

"I don't want to wake up the sleepers, mind you. I'm not in the business of starting revolutions, particularly not when I don't fully understand what's happening. I'm just seeding chaos where I can, shaking up the status quo, looking for the gaps in the system so that I can drive a wedge in there. I'll monkey wrench the whole endeavor if I can manage it, but for the moment, the end goal is a jail break. Me, and as many students as I can manage." she hid her expression behind the hood as she worked. More and more her end of the canvas was beginning to take shape, slender arms and necks, graceful curves, she'd abandoned the cherubs in favor of other heavenly bodies. The one they bore aloft, however, was comprised of a different, brighter, pallet pale white robes that shaded into pink clinging tightly to a figure whose skin seemed, somehow, luminescent as it reached it's way across the canvas.

She took a second to scrub forming tears from her eyes on her sleeve. Perhaps her infatuation was artificial . . . but the heartache still felt real. She hadn't seen her subject in months, had stayed away as much as she could, but every curve, tone, and expression was still burned indelibly into her memory. Seeing them reflected on the wall, even as created in her own hand, just reminded her of things she had tried so hard to pack down and ignore.

Fortunately, Ryu brought her back to the moment, her reverie breaking with a deep sigh. She shifted the ladder a bit closer to the redhead so that she could reach the full length of her goddess's arm more easily. Of course, what Ryu described was a gross violation of procedure, but Juniper had gotten used to the notion that the rules only applied to the students. It was part of why she was so dismissive of them.

"Does this Prefect have a name?" she asked conversationally, carefully detailing the extended hand. Her eyes narrowed, though whether from concentration on her work or outrage at Ryu's predicament was up for debate.

Vikky Nyberg. That name didn't ring any bells but then again Ryu wasn't one to snoop around any particular gossip scene, judging the nature of the school it couldn't have been anything good. She would've encouraged her to elaborate further on the matter, but part of her figured it might've been a blessing to think they're just crazy rather than realize what utmost misery they were actually in.

Ryu abandoned the landscape in favor of the more precious portion of the painting, selecting a soft yet light tone that came closest to Ishtar's skin shade, slowly applying several carefully selected strokes across the canvas that mimicked her bodily shape as best as she could manage without sketching an outline prior to starting. Sticking to her role as the woman in face of a deity certainly proved troubling seeing the details Juniper put down, but perhaps the natural beauty of the nubile figure would appeal to the audience of two as well if she captured it just perfectly. A near everyday image, there was nothing about it she couldn't remember though whether she could paint the human body as well with a spray can as she did with a brush had yet to be seen.

She took a moment to consider before answering. "Her name is Leriana Vallori .. one of Katya's or Vera's prefects, I believe.", she began, recalling the names and their affiliation to one another just barely though it took a lot of effort not to be distracted by the vivid images they brought along. "Look, I .. I wouldn't normally ask for your help, but I don't think I can last another two years of the same without breaking down entirely. I'm not asking for you to search for a solution to my problem, just .. if you happen to come across something, anything at all that I can hold against her, I'd be forever in your debt."

For a moment she said nothing, the sound of paint dispersed upon the wall the only sound lingering in the air. "If all I do is ask her to stop doing those things to me, I'm certain she'll find a way to push me back in the frying pan and I'll just end up where I started unless I can put pressure on her. I don't like it, but it's better than suffering the same fate every week."