Art museum - Portal 2 short fic

Art Museum

Caroline did not expect her day to be spent at a local art museum but here she was. Cave decided to take her because he "wanted inspiration for tests" and found it interesting when there was an art property to it. Which was probably true but Caroline suspected it was because he knew she liked art, as Cave didn't care one bit about how science looked, just what it did. But she knew that he knew that Caroline adored it, and wanted to make her happy. She had drawn most of the signs for the testing areas and designed the looks of many testing elements, after all. So she would always be delighted to go to something like this and Cave was too. Anything to keep his lab boys from arguing with him. He simply told Greg to keep the place in order for a couple of hours and they'll be back soon enough.

As Caroline wandered the gallery halls she thought it was fascinating how you were charged money to look at something. To look at something that wasn't even made by the museum but instead, most often, dead people, who didn't even want to donate their art to such a building in the first place. Or maybe they did. But here she and the art were either way. At least the art was enjoyable, even when she didn't totally get the reasoning or message behind it. Some canvases seemed like a couple colors were just dumped on and left to dry. You could do just the same by going through the Repulsion and Propulsion gel testing back at Aperture. But somehow these paintings were praised and had a hidden meaning, most likely made as the painting was donated to the museum. Then again anything can be turned into a meaning, she considered.

She was now looking close at the statues. Greek statues, it seemed. Most likely replicas, she thought. She would have to ask Cave about that, as he knew a lot about Greek history and mythology, referencing it frequently. Caroline had a silly thought then, that there were beings trapped inside the statues. That it is only plaster, and a real body is within it. Trapped there for years upon years. Caroline would hate to be trapped inside a statue. To see people look at her. Observe. Take photos. Be rude about something her creator messed up, that she could not even see because if you were a statue, you could not move to find a reflection.

Caroline looked down at the floor, feeling slightly embarrassed from looking at the statue and looked for other pieces of art to look at, walking swiftly to more paintings.

Caroline found herself fixated on a large painting. It was covered in small, multicolored pieces of glass, filling the canvas and reflecting back on her. She saw her own eyes and other features distorted in the colors, it was quite interesting.

She wondered how the facility was holding up. It probably was, Greg was a good man and knew how to have a hold on everybody, even if he wasn't confident like Cave was. She thought about how people listened to her when she herself gave orders, and how sometimes they didn't and saw her as some kind of joke. But Cave would always get mad at that. Maybe Greg went through that too and Caroline wasn't alone. Caroline then wondered if Greg would enjoy this like she did. She thought he would bring his daughter too and the small girl would run around trying to take it all in. When Greg would bring her into work, she'd try and control everyone's workflow in a joyful, chaotic mess. Like the painting, almost. Then Caroline wished she herself was small again, and thought about how things would be much easier. She could run off without a care. She could make a mistake without being called foolish, only light teasing because you're young. Crack a joke and everyone would laugh. Maybe she'd ask Cave if he felt like that too. Caroline could hear that Cave was in the room next to her, asking people about their scientific values and if they wanted to work at Aperture. It was disruptive. But funny.

Caroline brought herself back into the moment and realized she liked where she was. She liked Aperture and she liked working with Cave. Science was her favorite thing in the world, above art after all.

She moved onto the room Cave was in and saved her pondering for another time, as she apologized to the people Cave was enthusiastically talking to, and looked at more beautiful art. She knew she could definitely take inspiration from it. She was glad they'd gone to the museum.