[ It isn't a surprise to find that this commercial bus isn't, in fact, terribly like a bus at all. But it very much is a learning process to root around in the back for a hiding spot and realize that the spaces under the benches are uneven but strangely cavernous. And soft.
They're upside down, with the cushions on the underside and exposed metal above. Will spares enough time to process this and then crawls under one in the back.
It's a terrible idea, all things considered. He's a grown man and barely fits, but there is something horrible and frantic in him at the idea of losing this connection, however vague it is. There's been no mirrors that contained Will's own reflection so far, only other, alien rooms, but that doesn't mean he'll get lucky about finding one with another human inside of it. Will doesn't want to--
There. The sound of the end of the bus creaking with pressure put on it. Do they even do that, do they weigh anything?
Will stiffens under the bench, feels his shirt sticking to the small of his back with sweat despite the chill that's been in the air since he arrived, and then...
And then he hears a very un-shadow-like noise. Metal on rocks. And then metal on metal, light and clashing like it rolled when it hit the ground. Will blinks and listens to the shadow-dog leave and slowly, he crawls forward enough to confirm what he thought he'd heard... He's alone in the bus.
The mirror is empty, and when Will looks outside to see the source of the noise, he ducks right back out of the view of the window. Because it's empty out there except for the shadow-dog, roving away, presumably following the noises leading it off.
Leading it off...
Will looks at the mirror again, now showing a markedly different empty room with wallpaper on the floor. He bends down to pick up a scrap of metal - a seat belt buckle, separate from the bench? - and carves unevenly into the mirror. ]
Thank you
[ It still hasn't faded by the time he leaves the bus, to pick up one of the items that might have been thrown earlier: a wire trash can, about as tall as Will's knee and broken enough that it's clearly taken some damage...possibly from being tossed around? ]
HEYYYY v-sauce, michael here. how much...does a shadow weigh??
They're upside down, with the cushions on the underside and exposed metal above. Will spares enough time to process this and then crawls under one in the back.
It's a terrible idea, all things considered. He's a grown man and barely fits, but there is something horrible and frantic in him at the idea of losing this connection, however vague it is. There's been no mirrors that contained Will's own reflection so far, only other, alien rooms, but that doesn't mean he'll get lucky about finding one with another human inside of it. Will doesn't want to--
There. The sound of the end of the bus creaking with pressure put on it. Do they even do that, do they weigh anything?
Will stiffens under the bench, feels his shirt sticking to the small of his back with sweat despite the chill that's been in the air since he arrived, and then...
And then he hears a very un-shadow-like noise. Metal on rocks. And then metal on metal, light and clashing like it rolled when it hit the ground. Will blinks and listens to the shadow-dog leave and slowly, he crawls forward enough to confirm what he thought he'd heard... He's alone in the bus.
The mirror is empty, and when Will looks outside to see the source of the noise, he ducks right back out of the view of the window. Because it's empty out there except for the shadow-dog, roving away, presumably following the noises leading it off.
Leading it off...
Will looks at the mirror again, now showing a markedly different empty room with wallpaper on the floor. He bends down to pick up a scrap of metal - a seat belt buckle, separate from the bench? - and carves unevenly into the mirror. ]
Thank you
[ It still hasn't faded by the time he leaves the bus, to pick up one of the items that might have been thrown earlier: a wire trash can, about as tall as Will's knee and broken enough that it's clearly taken some damage...possibly from being tossed around? ]