[text/video] un: @skull

[ryuji]

[A few days after gravity is restored to the station, Ryuji returns to the mess hall from Haru's garden to find a small robot flipped upside down, panicking through a series of morse beeps and boops, which- okay, that's kind of cool, and quickly figures out that the paneling and suction entrances of the little guy means it's probably meant for filtration and cleaning.

Looks pretty study, looks... waterproof, maybe? He lends a hand to get him right side up and it starts slowly moving forward. Ryuji takes out his communicator and immediately films this as it happens, because, why not?

He posts two videos on the network- the roomba moving down the hall and one, a few hours later in the fitness center as it crawls from the edge, and dives right in.]

Oh shit! Are you supposed to do that?

Whoa, whoa- I don't know how to fix you if you--- WHOA, COOL.




Hey, sup?

Just lettin you guys know the pool looks crystal clear now. All thanks to this little dude.

I figure I should give 'em a name but uh

Everything that comes to mind is kinda lame

Anyway, I think it's good? Anyone wanna give it the first try?

[Complete with file0033.png - a picture of crystal clear water.]

Comments

[ryuji]

[He gets the sense that Naoya is talking about someone from home, and Ryuji, who constantly worries that Ann or Futaba are going to show up one day here at the station, feels a slight bit of guilt in his chest for wishing that exact same thing... that they were here.]

How're you holdin' up, by the way?

Missing your friends?

[Yeah.]

[imperialsun]

[Hmmm...he thinks about it before smiling.]

Yeah...if I didn't miss them I'd be asking myself questions. Thankfully we had all just graduated and were going to meet again in three years. If they end up being here, I'll be happy...

[He moves a little in the water.]

...but this means we have three years to figure this entire mystery out. Otherwise I'll have messed up our promise.

[ryuji]

[He thinks about that for a moment- and sort of grimaces.]

If we're here for three years, messin' up a promise to see your friends is probably gonna be the least of our problems.

[Yeah, he says our- because if it takes that long to get off of this station, then he's pretty sure he's going to go nuts.]

But I'll keep 'em in my prayers. Not that those've done that much, but eh. Can't hurt to try, right?

[imperialsun]

[Our problems, huh. Naoya just nods at him, grinning.]

At this point it doesn't hurt to try. I'll continue to make sure that I've grown during those three years, like I promised. [He briefly stretches his legs in the water.] Maybe I'll be a late bloomer and grow a few inches to be as tall as Reiji.

[ryuji]

You should put some muscles on, too.

[He smiles at Naoya.

Because obviously, to be an adult means you should be big and strong. Or something like that.]

100 sit ups a day are gonna hurt like hell the first few times you do it, but it gets easier.

[imperialsun]

Yeah probably...Reiji was called Captain Naked for a reason.

[Meanwhile Naoya wore his jacket all the way up.]

Can we start with a number a little lower than that? I don't mind trying it, I just don't know if I'll be able to survive that. Unless we can use healing spells afterwards?

[ryuji]

Captain Naked? Dude...

[He's heard of Captain Kidd, but that's just causing a weird mish-mosh of thinking of Captain Kidd naked; all bony and terrifying and... without his clothes on? Not really that fortuitous of an image.

He kind of misses the old chap. Having a pirate ship in his heart was pretty neat.]

Well, after the sit ups, you gotta do 100 pushups too. Yeah man, it doesn't get any easier. Maybe you're gonna need to stock up on those healing spells.

[Smiling brightly at him, he gives Naoya a little shove from his floating position.]

[imperialsun]

He never wore a shirt. The girls also called him six-pack leader when they were swarming around him. He's a real-life delinquent in every way...but also a good friend.

[Naoya has very special friends.]

This sounds like an intense workout. Were you doing this before coming here?

[Because Naoya is going to grab Ryuji's arm despite the shoving, and pinch with his entire hand to see how much muscle he has.]

[ryuji]

Well... he kinds sounds like a guy I'd get along with pretty well. I think you'd get along with my friends pretty well too.

[Come to think of it... he does have to introduce Naoya to the rest of the thieves. He didn't know why it hadn't happened already- he's also not entirely sure that Naoya hasn't already made initial contact with them.

Forgive him, his social etiquettes are all sorts of out of whack.]

Ay--ay----owch! What the hell? [There's some definition there, but it's lean.]

Hands off the merchandise!