oo4 » voice

[gevurah]

[ PRIVATE to DICK GRAYSON ]

How does Wednesday afternoon sound?


[ PRIVATE to ZEVRAN ARAINAI ]

[ And now for the awkward part. ]

... Hey.


I don't suppose anyone remembers, but back in December I came across an old synagogue here. I've spoken to the citizens here who use it for shelter every now and then and they also thought it would be a good idea to help clean and fix it up. I'm no contractor and I can't offer anything in return unfortunately... I've only noticed a lot of people asking if there's something to do around here.

If you're interested, I figured helping out the people here would be one small step forward. Someone's got to eventually help with some of these buildings, hm? I also imagine there's got to be a few people who know a thing or two about repairing interiors. I noticed there was talk of building a greenhouse a few days ago.

[ A lengthy pause. ]

And a question since most on the network apparently enjoy them: do you think there's such thing as too much information? [ It's been on her mind for a couple of weeks now. ]

Comments

[gevurah]

She spoke to you in your head before?

[whatsupcroc]

Mmm, when she was younger. Also roughly the size of a barge or ten!

[gevurah]

Telepathic, singing dinosaurs.

[ A long pause. ]

This place is full of surprises.

[whatsupcroc]

( With fond thoughts over the surprises in the people she's met -- no matter what their form -- Collette knows she agrees. )

It really is. But I think I'm starting to sound like a broken record. I love it! The people we meet, the... worlds we learn about. Yeah, it's those worlds, too! Knowing any of that, and meeting each other, for however long that is...

( She trails off. What does she want to say? Less than she is. Collette laughs again, warming her tone of voice. No. Any of the sad parts can be locked away for her own perusal when she felt she had the fortitude to go examining them. )

Hah! Like I said, broken record over here. How boring is that?

[gevurah]

It's not.

I think I'm mostly surprised at how Transports get along for the most part. [ Different worlds means different cultural upbringings. How often do people clash here? Of course, she's not privy to every conversation on and off the network.

It's just... a miracle no one's gone AWOL yet. ]

[whatsupcroc]

Do you really think they do?

( Collette's curious. She's heard people butt heads, seen them come to cross purposes, seen the people who leave the city and do their best not to come back. She's not sure people get along so much as they tolerate, and that, at least -- )

It's the tolerance that baffles me. I like it, but it's totally the opposite of what I expected out of the world before.

[gevurah]

Same.

But being in the same predicament could be what keeps us tolerant of each other.

[whatsupcroc]

Comrades in arms?

[gevurah]

In a way. [ A light "ha". ]

[whatsupcroc]

Having something in common that other people don't really understand can do that for you, for sure. Being unrooted from home, transplanted here, kept away from the people you know for the most part, told you're here and going to be dragged into the past to fight out a war... okay, maybe I can see some reason for us to get along more than tear each other's throats out! We're in a city, but we're different, and we know it, and that's always going to be the case. Huh?

[gevurah]

[ Collette you are made of sunshine and rainbows, aren't you. ]

Nothing dampens your spirits, huh.

[whatsupcroc]

( More or less. It's a selling point, she supposes. )

Close enough to nothing.

( She winks. )

[gevurah]

You told me last time something good things happened.

Those things still happening?

[whatsupcroc]

( ... No, but it's barely a flicker of her eyelashes. Not someone, she supposes. )

Not the same thing, no. Others, yeah.

( She sounds a little less enthused, but she's still smiling. That's the important part, isn't it? )

[gevurah]

Oh, sorry to hear, Collette. [ About whatever it is that's now passed or stopped being a good thing. ]

[whatsupcroc]

( There's some humor back in her voice when she replies. )

Nothing to be sorry over. I'm glad it ever happened at all!

( She, of all people, had had a date! With a boy! Who'd said he liked her! So it was a bummer, but it was like the fond memories of Isaac saying she could talk to him whenever, or and of the things that'd happened before she'd --

Before. It's something to treasure.)

Things end, but that doesn't mean the memories leave right along with them, you know?

[gevurah]

[ A pause. ]

Did someone leave?

[ That's the first thing she suspects. ]

[whatsupcroc]

Yeah.

( In that, there's very little reason to lie. People leave all the time. It's a natural, correct assumption. )

[gevurah]

[ :( ]

Can I ask who?

[whatsupcroc]

( She only hesitates long enough to show she thought before answering. Sometimes an unusual thing out of Collette. )

Al.

( She says after a baet. Her smile's more of a lopsided grin at that point; she gives half a shrug. )

[gevurah]

Al? [ Wait a second, didn't Robin tell her that was his name? Even if she didn't believe him. ]

[whatsupcroc]

Alfred.

small>( Neither had Collette, but it hadn't mattered so much to her at the time. She wasn't an incredibly patient person by design. Habit and necessity had taught her how, so with him, she'd been waiting to see if he'd ever tell her his actual name.

Redundant point by now. )

[gevurah]

Oh, him.

I didn't realize you two were close.

[whatsupcroc]

Why would you have?

( She's curious and I'm HTML fail. She figures it was there on network, but who really bothered reading all of that? What two teens said to each other was water under the bridge. Flowing, changing, and usually quick to be forgotten. )

[gevurah]

We spoke a couple of times. [ Collette never came up in passing. ]