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[stridersgonnastride]

[Earlier.]

Dave is slouched at a table, facing the window. He might be watching the exploding galaxies. He might be staring into metaphorical rather than literal space.

The sunglasses hide a lot either way. Bags under your eyes? Bam, cool shades, no problem.

Unkempt hair? Whatever, you're a teenage boy, no one expects you to keep up with that shit.

Emo, slumped posture? You've been a whiny bitch for this entire retcon so far, why should now be any different?

He's got this all under control.

Comments

[freedom_is_grey]

But he still smells upset, which is why Liranan whines a little, shoving Ysalwen toward Dave because maybe she can fix it!

Fix it, Ysa!

"Um."

So this is probably going to be awkward. But she'll try anyway. Dave is her friend, no matter how old or cranky he is, and so --

"Dave? Are you all right?"

[stridersgonnastride]

He tenses up a little. Apparently he either didn't hear her walking over, or didn't expect her to stop and talk to him.

"yeah

"everything's cool"

[freedom_is_grey]

"So you won't mind some company, then?"

She settles down at his table with her back to the window.

Does she want to interrupt his view of the constant death and only semi-rebirth of the universe?

Maybe.

"Thanks."

[stridersgonnastride]

Dave gives her a gimlet-eyed stare, but that too, is hidden by the shades. It still looks enough like disaffected coolness. Probably.

"knock yourself out like you can see i'm pretty busy over here

"lots of thoughts going on don't let the stoic look fool you i am a font of wisdom just waiting to be set off"

That could be a good line to start up with some freestyle.



Maybe later.

[freedom_is_grey]

"You're always busy, I know."

Ysalwen doesn't smile. Liranan, settling himself under her chair, makes a little whining noise again.

"What's got you occupied just now, though? Consider this me asking."

[stridersgonnastride]

Dave is quiet for a minute. "have you ever had really weird dreams while you're here

"you know, hypothetically"

[freedom_is_grey]

Hypothetically, is it?

"I -- once or twice. It's disturbing, isn't it? They felt so real when they were happening, but then I woke up."

Hmm.

[stridersgonnastride]

"we've got some weird dreaming shit going on back home"

Except 'home' doesn't exist anymore.

"well

"on the meteor anyway. just wondering how much of that carried over here or if this is like, totally original bullshit hour where's the guy with the cane and the trap door 'cause this act is the pits"

[freedom_is_grey]

"Cane and trap -- no, never mind."

Sometimes Dave's idiom obscures his meaning, and sometimes it's very easy to get sidetracked asking about it.

(Today feels like it is definitely one of those days.)

"My world has, as you put it, weird dreaming shit of its own, but not -- not like a few of what I've had here. I generally don't get to speak with the dead at home, for one. And it's not -- "

How to put this.

"The absence of demons cajoling me to give up and give in is also a bit -- non-standard. Umm."

[stridersgonnastride]

"you talk to dead people here"

That seems to have caught his attention.

"in your dreams i mean not just the ones sitting around eating lunch like this a corpse party"

[freedom_is_grey]

"Yes. I generally try not to talk about the dead people I talk to out of my dreams, not least because I'm not always certain which of the dead know they are and which don't. It's -- distressing, I imagine, to find out from someone else that you have ceased to be alive."

Anyway.

"Is that what has you sitting here today? Dreaming about the dead?"

[stridersgonnastride]

"it's nothing just bullshit we dream about dead people all the time they live in the dream bubbles

"well not live you know what i mean" Dave shakes his head.

"they know they're dead but not all of them are real thrilled about it who would be"

[freedom_is_grey]

"I know."

Ysalwen's mouth twists at one corner, and something in the tone of her voice makes Liranan lift his head and bat it against her hand. Twice.

"I can't imagine anyone would be, honestly. It -- I wouldn't enjoy it much, myself."

[veryvorkosigan]

That is a very expressive slouch.

"Hi, Dave." Cordelia's voice is light and casual.

[stridersgonnastride]

Isn't it just. Dave does a good deadpan facial expression and monotone voice, but if you're good at body language, the clues are there.

He glances up at her. "hey," he says. "am i blocking your apocalyptic light show"

[veryvorkosigan]

"Nah, I've seen it before."

She looks at the window nonetheless, briefly contemplative.

[stridersgonnastride]

"loses that wow factor if you see it every day

"end of the universe whatever seen it before probably see it again let me know when you've got something bigger and better right"

[veryvorkosigan]

"Honestly I think I'd rather not see anything bigger. Though I'm not sure what that would even be."

She rests one hand on the back of an adjacent chair for a moment, more to take her weight off her feet than preparatory to seating herself.

[stridersgonnastride]

"you gotta be down at least two universes with a third one on the line before we get impressed

"and even then it's not exactly new and fresh thanks casey kasem heard that one before get a new hype man who doesn't think blowing up the world gets the crowd going"

Irony points for seeing it no matter where he ends up, maybe.

[veryvorkosigan]

"See, this is where I'd be inclined to advise going with something smaller-scale."

Distance, as another Vorkosigan observed once, is a damned lie.

[stridersgonnastride]

"do not even fucking worry we got plenty of smaller scale disasters too if that's what you're thirsty for"

[veryvorkosigan]

Her eyebrows rise slightly. "Yeah?"

(Not overtly want to talk about it?, but ... maybe a little.)

[stridersgonnastride]

"you cannot tell me you haven't seen the fashion disasters walking around this place and us with no one to tell tiffany to shut up because we love her"

It's a pretty weak deflection even foe him. The headache isn't doing him any favors.

[veryvorkosigan]

Weak, but she's inclined to let him get away with it. "Oh, kiddo, I am no judge of fashion disaster or success, ask anybody. Ask my friend Alys, she'll tell you. At length."

(Right now she's wearing a beige smock-like tunic with a pattern of green leaves and white flowers around the hem and the neckline, over tan knit trousers. It's anybody's guess whether this is currently in fashion on Sergyar, or anywhere really.)

[stridersgonnastride]

"you're an old lady from space

"who's going to tell you what not to wear"