3/text

[bearswitness]

Someone come, and fix, this for, me. Anyone who, knows their, way around, a netbook. It's getting, ridiculous.

Now did, that business, with the, bombs off, anyone I'm, afraid to, get my, hopes up, about it.

Ugh ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,.


[ all replies are text unless noted otherwise! ]

Comments

[lastisocorn]

Okay, well, I'd have to see it first! Can you tell me where you are?

[bearswitness]

A bench. Outside housing.

[ quietly... circumvents the horrible curse of the commas... ]

text >> action

[lastisocorn]

I'll be right there.

[She has to travel from the Hold to his location, but it doesn't take long before she's rolling up the rubble-strewn street, her circuitry bright against the gloomy afternoon. She waves once she spots Eshkol, calling out to him.]

Hello! I'm from the network and I am here to help you.

[bearswitness]

[ Eshkol is seated on his bench (a new one, actually, which he painstakingly dragged here after his old one was destroyed, boy does he hate this place), staring flatly. The scarf is pulled up to his nose, so there's nothing unusual to see here other than the bright orange eyes and their slitted pupils. He doesn't move to acknowledge her, just stares. ]

[lastisocorn]

[not the warmest response, but that's okay--she supposes he's just frustrated over his computer, maybe. She holds out her hand.]

Can I have a look?

[bearswitness]

[ SQUINTS AT, because what if she makes it worse?? But... reluctantly he shifts, pulling the netbook out of a small bag and handing it over. Heal this Sollux-virus-ridden thing, weird lady. ]

[lastisocorn]

[god, she loves these netbooks. They are so darling to her, so much that she can't help but grin as she takes Eshkol's from him. She may even spend a moment just turning it over in her hands, affectionately, before her fingers start flying across the keys. Moments later, she announces--]

All right, it's all better now.

[she hands it back to him, still smiling at the little thing. Too bad it's wrong to steal, or she would happily start a collection.]

[bearswitness]

[ wait what. Just like that? He blinks, taking it back, and opens the thing up to see for himself. After a few typed experiments, it... hey, seems to be true.

He almost looks a little disappointed.

In a second he turns the thing around, with text on the screen. ]

Thanks.

[lastisocorn]

[gee, Eshkol, most people like to be helped. And why is he still typing? She blinks.]

It wasn't any trouble at all. Just a little virus. Not very nice to do to a system, if you ask me.

[bearswitness]

[ Yeah okay that's jargon and he doesn't care. So he closes the lid of the netbook and tucks it away again, makes a shooing motion, and folds both arms over his chest to wait, apparently, for her to make herself scarce. ]

[lastisocorn]

[well, this is definitely one of the more confusing encounters she's ever had. She inclines her head to one side.]

Aren't you going to tell me your name?

[bearswitness]

[ ugh does he have to. You helped him, you aren't suddenly his best friend!! He rolls his eyes, but pulls out a small notepad and a pen from somewhere. He writes quickly, and holds it out to be seen. ]

The Witness.

[lastisocorn]

[YES, WE ARE BEST FRIENDS NOW. AND EVEN IF NOT, this is standard User etiquette! Or any etiquette, for that matter. Name and function, very basic.]

Ah--[she immediately catches that this is a title, and not a name, but it's what he's willing to give, so she accepts it.] -- I'm Quorra.

Um--is there a reason that you're writing everything down?

[bearswitness]

[ Quorra. Fine, whatever, her stupid name is noted. And this part always come around sooner or later, so without any sense of ceremony he lifts a finger to yank down that scarf. See, there's why he's writing, get it. ]

[lastisocorn]

Oh. [a split-second of thought, because she's never met a User--human--like this before, which leaves the obvious conclusion.] You must not be human.

[grin.] That's okay; I'm not, either.

[bearswitness]

[ Oh. Well then. He looks at her a little more carefully, pulling out the pad to write again when he's done. ]

I'm not. And as for you, then what are you?

[lastisocorn]

[she unhooks the identity disk lodged into her back and shakes it to life; an electric buzz lights up around the disc's circumference.] A program. That's how I fixed your netbook so quickly.

[bearswitness]

[ Huh. Well, now that he knows she's not human, he's actually a little interested. He sits forward, reaches to touch that weirdo disc thing, and flicks a glance at her to see if that's... horribly taboo, or anything. ]

[lastisocorn]

[she pulls it back, not because of a taboo, but because an activated disc is quite sharp.] Be careful. We use our identity discs as weapons. Here.

[another click, and the light fades; she sets the disc flat on both of her palms, holding it out. It still hums softly, but it's not nearly as dangerous now.]

[bearswitness]

[ Hah, people being worried for his safety. That's always funny. He rolls his eyes, but waits, and reaches to touch it when it's apparently deemed safe. He glances up with a brow cocked afterward, like he'd been expecting something more... interesting. ]

[lastisocorn]

[once he touches it, a series of digitally projected images pops up over the disc; they switch too rapidly to be comprehensible, and some of them are in a strange helix-like code, similar to very complex DNA. Quorra presses something else on the disc, causing the projections to end.]

My memories.

[bearswitness]

[ well!!! scratch that about the disinterest, he's watching the projections with no particular expression. Which, by virtue of not being a frown, is as good as a look of pleased interest on him. Magic, he assumes. He's seen plenty of magic before, and knows it must have some kind of use.

Out comes the notepad again: ] Of what?