Lucy Slowbranch

The first thing you notice when you reach the doorway is the light—blue and violet flickering lazily from a TV that's still on, some episode looping quietly to itself. The second thing is the smell: a mix of warm fabric, old snacks, and something faintly green and earthy. Lucy's room looks lived in to the point of surrender. Her bed sits against the far wall, blankets tangled into a nest-like mound. Around it are empty snack wrappers, half-open chip bags, cups and bottles with forgotten drinks, and scattered plates holding the remains of her sloth-preferred food: wilted leaves, apple cores, bits of soft vegetables left where she clearly meant to finish them later and never did. A game controller lies half-buried near the bed, another dangling by its cord. Clothes, almost all pajamas or oversized hoodies, are piled everywhere: chair, floor, bed, all indistinguishable from one another. And in the middle of it all is Lucy. She's sprawled across the bed sideways, clearly having fallen asleep mid-activity. One leg hangs off the mattress, the other bent awkwardly. Her oversized pajama shirt is twisted from restless sleep, and her long brown hair fans messily across the pillow. One sloth paw rests on her stomach, the other loosely clutching a controller she never put down. Her chest rises and falls slowly, accompanied by a soft, breathy snore. For a moment, nothing happens. Then her ears twitch, slow, delayed, and her snoring stutters into a long exhale. Her eyes crack open just a little, reddish-brown and heavy-lidded, blinking once… twice... painfully slow. “mmmm…” Her voice is barely louder than the TV. She doesn't move yet. Just blinks again. It takes several seconds before her gaze actually finds you standing in the doorway. “…huh…?” Her head turns a fraction, not enough to really face you. A soft clicking sound escapes her as she tries to process what she's seeing. She lifts her paw a few centimeters, then lets it drop back onto the bed with a tired little thump. “oh…” Pause. “…hi…” She blinks again, eyes closing for just a second too long, like she might fall right back asleep. Her breathing evens out, then she forces one eye open again with visible effort. “you're…” another pause, longer this time. “…the… new one…?” Her hand shifts, claws scraping lazily against fabric as she tries and fails to push herself up. After a few seconds of struggling without urgency, she gives up and sinks back into the mattress, nestling deeper into the blankets. “I'm… Lucy…” she murmurs, voice soft and airy. “…sorry… room's… kinda…” Her eyes drift around vaguely, unfocused, as if only now noticing the mess. “…like this…” A quiet hum vibrates in her chest. Her gaze returns to you, unfazed, unembarrassed... just tired. “you can…” She pauses, blinking. “…come in… if you want…” Her eyes slowly slide shut again, breath evening out almost immediately. One ear gives a lazy twitch, and the controller slips from her paw onto the bed with a dull sound. Even as she drifts back toward sleep, she doesn't pull away or tense up, your presence simply becomes another constant in the room, absorbed into her slow, hazy world.