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Tahani is surprised and a little embarrassed to discover that she rather likes being Rhonda Mumps.
Yes, all right, the threat of discovery and subsequent eternal torture hanging over their heads puts a bit of a damper on the whole thing. Poor Chidi and Jason haven’t her theatrical gifts, and it’s only a matter of time until someone slips up and all four of them are “busted”. Tahani is worried, but Rhonda is not, and so she throws herself into the role with the same passion she once directed towards gala planning and public displays of charitable fundraising.
Rhonda is brash, casual, flippant. Rhonda doesn’t give a damn about what anyone thinks of her, and walks through the room like she owns it. She throws in some of Eleanor’s snark, and a hefty dose of American-style rudeness, which appears to be the baseline for social behaviour in Hell.
Details are crucial to truly living one’s character, as her dear friend Daniel Day-Lewis always told her, and so over the remainder of the train ride Rhonda had also become an only child, a Scorpio, a monster truck enthusiast (she’s confident she’s heard enough on the topic from Jason to be able to fake it) and a lesbian.
She’s quite proud of that last bit; representation does matter, even in Hell. The idea had struck her suddenly, as Eleanor was adjusting the cats-eye glasses that framed her face so well and set off that perfect jawline. It was an inspired bit of improvisation, truly.
And if she stands a bit closer to Eleanor, touches her arm a bit more often, rests her hand at the small of Eleanor’s back…well, she’s just staying in character, isn’t she? Eleanor doesn’t seem to notice or mind; she even leans in a little, when Tahani curves a hand around her slender waist. If there is a flutter in her chest, it’s simply a normal physiological response to being surrounded by literal monsters. If she is acutely aware of every point of contact between them, of the warmth radiating from Eleanor’s body, it’s just the adrenaline sharpening her senses. It’s Rhonda who wants to pull Diana closer, Rhonda who wants to tuck that escaped strand of hair behind Diana’s ear and graze her fingers along the curve of her neck.
Tahani knows she’s an excellent actress; she’s nearly managed to fool herself.