(no subject)

[bulletwithmyname]

[when the feed comes on, it’s focused on the very freckled face and curly ginger mop of a teenaged boy. he’s way too skinny, hollow-cheeked and bird-boned with shoulders that hold his shirt like a bent coathanger. he’s also leaning against someone else, but all that’s visible of this other person is a shoulder and a fall of long black hair. the redhead has an affable face, gawky and harmless, and a riot of curly red hair that reaches his shoulders]

There, I think I got this working.

My name’s Ash Trine, and I’m hoping that someone out there can help me out a bit. I’ve got two big questions.

So, where we come from, people have Talents, sort of like the god powers I’ve heard we all get here. But that’s not the only kind of magic there is. There’s magic everywhere, in everything, if you know how to see it and use it. And we do, but that doesn’t do a damn bit of good here.

[he sighs a little, settling more against his silent companion’s shoulder]

But I reckon if the gods are handing out Talents, there’s like as not some kind of ambient magic here, something else we can use. Spells, symbols, rituals, anything like that. And I need to know about that. There’s some stuff I need to do. So anybody who knows anything about it, I’d be much obliged if you’d share. Anything at all would help, I don’t mind having to figure out most of it myself if it comes to that. Just somewhere to start.

Second thing, I’m looking for a job. I’m pretty good with numbers, if anyone needs a bookkeeper, but it’d be even nicer if someone’s in need of a cook. Most of what I know how to make is savory, hearty kind of food--stews, roast and potatoes, shepherd’s pie, that sort of thing, but I’ve been told once or twice that I catch on pretty quick.

[there’s a snort from off camera, and ash turns to the person he’s leaning on]

Are you offering up an opinion, Kieran?

[the voice that answers is considerably lower than ash’s, with a distinct drawl and a definite tone of amusement]

No. I already said you ain’t poisoned us yet, what more d’you want?

[ash rolls his eyes]

Such a glowing recommendation. You’re sleeping on the floor.

[a puppy-huge tattooed hand reaches over from offscreen, knuckling ash’s chin]

The hell I am.

[the feed catches a second of a sweet smile turned at the man offscreen before ash remembers the video and shuts off the feed.]

Comments

action;

[tongue3y3s]

[It takes her around an hour to walk there, but she moves fast, slowly getting more and more used to this trek, even if she doesn't like staying in the weird hive. She prowls into the Welcome Hall and walks into their hivesuite, sniffing around to see where Ash is.]

[bulletwithmyname]

[ash is in his room, as per usual! she can probably tell that really he's only been between there and the kitchen lately, and that kieran's been with him. at the moment, they are sitting on the bed, as it is the only surface not the floor meant for more than one person in the room]

Hey, Terezi.

[tongue3y3s]

[Warily, since she acutely smells the very awake presence of a not-too-nice-smelling someone, Terezi creeps over to the entrance to Ash's room. She has her cane in hand because she is a helpless little blind girl who is unfamiliar with the small, enclosed space. Of course.]

Hello, Ashes, [she says, peeking through the door of his room. When she zones in on the smell of sun-coloured skin and a bad sense of humour, Terezi unleashes her most prominent toothfish grin.] Hello there, Ash's moirail.

[bulletwithmyname]

[ash has started getting the hang of this telepathy thing, at least enough to sense her nervousness, and he smiles]

He's not going to chew on you if you don't chew on me, promise.

[then he turns to kieran]

Kieran, this is Terezi. Terezi, Kieran.

[felttheburn]

[there's a beat while kieran looks her over, glancing back and forth between terezi and ash. but then he just shrugs.]

Nice shades.

[tongue3y3s]

[She would question why she would ever try to chew on a wiggler, but Terezi's attention is redirected to Kieran. She sniffs at him, and then her smile becomes a little bit less threatening.] Thank you. I've been assured by my matesprit that they are acceptable levels of cool. [She pushes them further up on her nose and sniffs toward Ash, then back to his moirail.]

Have you been sufficiently convinced that I am not a made up wiggler tale?

[felttheburn]

Ash likes to exaggerate, I never said you were made up.

I only asked if you were a bug.

[tongue3y3s]

That's rude! [Terezi exclaims, throwing an offended glance over to Ash.] Did you properly assure your moirail that I am not an invertebrate?

As you can see I am neither Carapacian nor do I have any form of exoskeleton. And I have a vertebral column.

[felttheburn]

You can't blame me, a grub is a worm.

[bulletwithmyname]

I did tell him, but I think he's a little offended you keep using bug words for me.

[ash, however, does not sound offended. entertained, at worst]

[tongue3y3s]

[Alarmed, she protests:] I believe we have experienced a sort of miscommunication! Wigglers are not bugs, they're little, ah-- babies! [Because she remembers that this is what humans call their offspring. Even though it is a strange word and has nothing to do with wriggling little grubs. It isn't her place to judge.]

[felttheburn]

......so you're calling him baby?

[bulletwithmyname]

Yes, and that's funny, even if I'm not one of those, either, I'm nineteen years old.

[his voice is gentle, placating]

Terezi, relax, he's just messing with you a bit.

[tongue3y3s]

[She pauses, then looks concerned.] This is starting to sound very ashen. [And not ashen as anything to do with her wiggler, which they will have no idea of, but Terezi feels kind of freaked out at even the insinuation of auspisticism from Ash.]

Maybe we should change the subject. Definitely we should change the subject.

[bulletwithmyname]

[his forehead wrinkles in confusion. why is your troll word his name]

...of course I sound like myself. Isn't that a given?

[felttheburn]

[kieran is shutting up now, as he has no idea what they're talking about anymore and the troll girl seems distressed.]

[tongue3y3s]

[Terezi winces and sniffs at them both, thinking. Her chalk is at her courthouse so she can't really suggest they draw, and she's not sure the angry smelling one would like shitty chalk drawings anyway, even if the walls of this boring human hive could benefit from some colour. She can barely smell anything in here.]

Hey, do you two like climbing trees? It's kind of rainy outside but not too much. That makes it more fun sometimes.

[Yeah, it is now pretty apparent that all Terezi does is go on the internet, draw, roleplay, and climb trees. And there's no more internet.]

[bulletwithmyname]

[it sure is. ash looks at kieran for a minute, and she might be able to suss out that they seem to be having an extremely pidgeon telepathic conversation where ash sends a simple idea and kieran replies at greater length because ash can just hear his thoughts]

Yeah, we're up for that.

[actually, kieran mostly looks nonplussed, but ash is smiling]

[felttheburn]

[whatever, he'll climb a tree. he'll climb a tree like you have never seen smelled(???) anyone climb a tree!]

[tongue3y3s]

[Her black lips spread into a full-on beam; she laughs, mostly out of relief for the awkwardness to be over, and then lightly drubs at Ash's ankle with her cane.]

Come on, then, follow me. [Her cane gets folded under her arm as she bounces off toward the door to the hivesuite. It is now also apparent that Terezi is approximately 100% full of shit at all times and never needed that stupid cane for even a second.]

[bulletwithmyname]

[ash knew that the cane was a ploy, but far be it from him. he just looks at kieran and shakes his head, grinning, before hauling himself to his feet]

[felttheburn]

[kieran figured it was probably strong enough to use as a defense, but not that it was completely unnecessary. he narrows his eyes at her and is studying the cane as he gets up to follow them.]

[tongue3y3s]

[If only you knew, Kieran. If only you knew.

Terezi all but prances outside and doesn't seem bothered by the rain at all when she bursts from the doors of the Welcome Hall into the warm drizzle. She chirps gleefully, sniffing around to try to decide which direction she should take them. There's some trees by the Hive, but she doesn't think they're very good for climbing.]

There are some really fun climbing trees about a mile from here, [she explains, digging the points of her teeth into her bottom lip thoughtfully.]

[bulletwithmyname]

What do you think, Kieran?

[ash takes his glasses off and slips them into his shirt pocket, because the rain will only make them useless anyway. sometime between getting up from the bed and walking outside he's taken kieran's hand, lacing their fingers. he looks at the other boy with an amused expression, willing to indulge terezi if he is]

[felttheburn]

[kieran shrugs again, like he did when terezi first came into the room. it's a 'this is weird but i'll roll with it' sort of expression. he seems more comfortable outside, and doesn't mind the rain one bit.]

I think if we're going to climb trees we should find the good ones.