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Julie and Devin - December 24th - Afternoon - Ork Underground, Touristville, West End Julie and Devin strode down the lanes of Touristville. The lanes were in full Christmas frenzy with last minute shoppers. The streets were narrow and so it took time to get from place to place. The two main lanes crossed in the middle in a t from north to south and east to west. The northern access route, the one just under the Big Rhino, the nicest ork and troll restaurant in all of Seattle, was the most prosperous due to both the proximity to the restaurant and the closeness to cross traffic that flowed east to west as it was closer to the northern entrance than the southern. The lanes were wider, it was cleaner, the products sold were a higher quality, it was warmer and the air even smelled better. "It's a zoo in here," said Julie. "This is Touristville in full swing," said Devin. "Well to do orks and trolls come here to buy local. It's also where most of the restaurants are. The topside utilities company is almost directly above so it's easy to vent all the waste heat during the summer. During the winter we keep that waste heat, scrub out most of the smell from the cooking and pump it into the underground to keep the temperatures above freezing. That heat keeps this area pretty warm which is why it's the best developed." They moved slowly. Devin didn't want to squeeze past anyone and so he kept from bumping into people. If Julie was on her own despite her size she could've squeezed here or there, but Devin just had to be patient. Normally she'd have to deal with people hawking their wares to her but the shopkeepers were too busy dealing with customers to bother her. They turned west suddenly at the crossroads where a haggard police officer was directed traffic. What little she could smell of the food vanished. Despite the food she'd eaten earlier her stomach still rumbled. Thankfully the shopping noise covered it up. "You don't waste anything do you?" she asked. "We can't afford to," he replied. "Now I don't know much about women's clothing, but I know someone who does. First stop." Devin must have had the patience of a saint because he went clothes shopping with a young woman on Christmas Eve. Despite his size he didn't have to dip his head. After all Touristville was made to accommodate all sizes big and small. Julie walked in behind him and saw both women alone, women in pairs, women in packs, women with children and a few woman accompanied by glum looking men laden down heavily with bags. Devin carefully wended his way around clothing racks until he found whom he was looking for. A petite ork woman with red hair pulled back into a messy bun was busy trying to keep ahead of the customers and roamed around looking for people who wanted to make a purchase while making small talk. Cash registers were no longer really a thing anymore. Why did you need it when money could just be transferred electronically? Petite was a relative term as well as she was under two meters with change to spare. She noticed Devin, after all he was a troll and therefor hard to miss and she smiled up at him when he approached. "Hello pastor Devin. I got that right. It's pastor, right?" she asked. "Just Devin will do fine," he said, amicably. "How are you Justinia?" "Busy bee making honey," she said quickly, but politely. "Something for your friend?" Justinia made a quick gesture to Julie. "Hi," said Julie, shyly. "Hello dear," said Justinia. "Julie helps out at the abbey. She's one of the resident healers," said Devin. "Oh? New nurse?" she asked. "Got your hands on some new skillwires, eh?" "Actually she's one of Marco's friends." Julie noticed something. There was a shift from her quick but polite demeanor to one that was now slower and more genuine. Something about his words made the outer shell of someone in retail crack open to expose the person underneath. This person, Justinia, who worked in retail seemed genuinely happy on Christmas Eve. Julie didn't understand the nuance, but she wondered just how much weight Marco's name carried. If she'd truly understood the significance of this she would have been less surprised if Justinia did something like spontaneously grow another head or burst into flames than be in retail and happy on Christmas Eve. "Well that's lovely," she enthused. "Absolutely lovely. How long have you been working down here?" "I volunteer every Sunday at the abbey for about four months now," said Julie. "Well that's got to be some sort of new record," said Justinia offhandedly. Devin raised his fist to his mouth and cleared his throat "Oh, my apologies. Clothes shopping are you?" Justinia asked. "Um yes, but I don't really have much," Julie said, nervously. "Oh, your money is no good here," said Justinia. That was great as Julie didn't have any. "So you're hanging out with all of the corporate types eh? Which one are you with?" she asked. "She's actually there on a pilot program. Julie is a rather talented magician, but not linked up with any corporation," said Devin. Justinia pursed her lips and frowned in thought. Julie felt nervous at being sized up. "Well then from one woman to another younger one, let me tell you a secret," she said conspiratorially, and leaned forwards. "Don't try to chase the corporate fashions. It's better to develop your own personal style and refine it. That way you're not constantly in last month's fashion." "I don't really think I'm the kind of person to set trends," admitted Julie. "I certainly hope not. Trends kill personal style. Then you've developed it for nothing and it's still old. No, you just come with me," said Justinia. And so began a two hour journey into tops, bottoms, shoes and accessories. Julie knew this was weird now despite never having worked in retail before. Justinia was paying attention to her and only her despite this being the day to make sales and everyone else on the floor was totally slammed. She'd even redirected a few harried looking shoppers to other associates. The two hours were up and Justinia made Julie promise to come back sometime to help her refine her personal style. Her old ratty shoes were thrown away and she wore shiny, new, black, fur lined boots which helped keep her feet warm. Devin didn't look at all like the glum looking men who held bags and purses for their female counterparts despite having spent two solid hours in a women's clothing store. Weird. "She was really nice," said Julie. "She really was," said Devin. "I hope her boss doesn't get mad at her though," said Julie. "I don't think that will happen." "Oh? Why's that." "I don't know her well, but Justinia is the owner." Julie and Devin - December 24th - Afternoon - Ork Underground, Touristville, East End Julie and Devin had an easier time of it this time right until they crossed lanes once again. A police officer with a stop sign was directing Christmas traffic to keep things at least semi-orderly. As they went east the decor changed. She'd never been this way before and signs were in different languages, mostly east Asian looking characters began to crop up more and more and English less and less. She started to see strange items which she didn't have any names for, herbs, spices, food which looked real only because of how bizarre it was. That is unless someone pressed soy into the shape of pig's faces on ice and there were dozens upon dozens of them. The tourists here were different as well. Some spoke English, but most spoke a different language and unlike the somewhat orderly lines she'd seen in the western district when appropriate, albeit messy this was absolute chaos. Everyone pushed. Everyone shoved. Everyone crowded. Everyone haggled and haggled loudly. Only due to Devin's size was he not pushed or shoved, though he was crowded. It never seemed personal it was just how people behaved down here. Julie stayed close to him. "Mrs. Liu's shop is up ahead," he said. Julie looked up and read more characters she didn't understand, but she did see the numbers 88 big and bold, one in yellow and one in red, both neon. "Wait, so the Chinese district is in the east? Isn't that...I dunno...Racist or something?" she asked. Devin laughed and ushered her in. She had to push her way past people who were trying to get in and out all around her. "Tourists don't understand subtlety well," he said. "Better to be blatant." If Julie hadn't understood before she surely didn't understand going in. The place was an explosion of concentrated colors: Yellow, red, white and green with white dominating. The ground was covered in what looked like etched squares and circles and the pillars around that supported the ceiling made the area look neither too open nor closed if one didn't count being absolutely stuffed with people. It was part restaurant and part candy shop and even here people were arguing and haggling with attendants behind counters who were doing the same, albeit slightly more politely. Devin began to push past people and Julie followed behind until he came to an attendant. Julie wondered at how he just ignored the line and thought about how terribly rude that was, but understood if she waited she'd probably starve to death before she was served. Devin and the ork behind the counter near a glass case of what looked like steaming dumplings spoke quickly in Chinese. The man looked to Julie, smiled toothily, covered his mouth, bowed his head and immediately retreated. Less than a minute later a slender looking ork woman in a dress that hugged her slender plump form strode quickly to meet them, but did not rush. Her tusks gleamed white as did her skin, near porcelain, her hair was black and long and straight and her eyes were green. She looked to be in her middle years. No she did not rush at all. Rushing would be unseemly. Mrs. Liu simply arrived quickly and promptly. "Hello pastor Devin," she said in her lightly accented English. Without thinking about it or being consulted they were being ushered towards her and away from the crowds to a table separated by a few painted bamboo partitions. They all sat down and belatedly Julie did too. Mrs. Liu reached under the table, flicked on the hidden white noise generator and the noisy chaos disappeared. "Hello Mrs. Liu," he said. "Always a pleasure to see you. You are always welcome at 88 Tastes of China. How may I be of help today?" she asked. Okay, now Julie knew something was up. She knew Mrs. Liu owned this place and she'd met not one but two business owners in three hours. She'd gotten her clothes and now she was in a restaurant. Devin had told her that he'd show her how Touristville would open up to her if she asked, but this felt like something more than that. A woman approached with a glass carafe full of water in her hands, bowed deep and placed the carafe in the center of the table before departing wordlessly. "I was just in the neighborhood and I decided to bring Julie by," said Devin, as if he hadn't just pushed past hundreds of tourists to get here. "How thoughtful of you," she said. "I've been hoping to meet you, Julie. Thank you for coming by. You are quite welcome in my place of business." "Thank you," said Julie, nervously. There was a brief pause before Julie continued. "I very much liked your...I forget the name of it. Tang something," Julie said. Mrs. Liu knew exactly what she meant but would not correct someone she wished to curry favor with. That would be impolite. Impoliteness was intolerable. She was relieved when Devin stepped in with the correct word. Letting her openly struggle would also be impolite. Silly gwai lo. "I think it's called Tanghulu," said Devin. "Right, the candied fruit on sticks. Even those cherry tomatoes. I wasn't sure about candied tomatoes but they were great. Also, Marco said you use real Chinese fruits. Is that true?" asked Julie. Her mind was on food and Marco and so she forgot her predicament and gushed about both. Mrs. Liu smiled just the proper amount and nodded. "I am an excellent at procurement. That which needs to come from elsewhere comes to me. All at excellent prices as well I might add. I must thank you both for tending to my people. Accidents do happen from time to time," she said. "Uhh...Yeah," said Julie. "Would you care for something from my shop?" she asked. Julie was about to decline but her stomach betrayed her with a grumble. Now that the white noise generator was on and shutting out all noise everyone could hear it. Mrs. Liu looked to someone and a short time later Julie was provided with a plate of dumplings. "I apologize. Normally I am able to anticipate the needs of another before they even know what they need. I shall simply have to get to know you better," said Mrs. Liu. She bowed slightly at the waist. Julie felt self-conscious, but not so self-conscious that the dumplings went uneaten for long. She was famished. Mrs. Liu hid a smile behind her hand, but not so hidden that it couldn't be seen in the way it tugged at her cheeks and touched her eyes. "Thank you very much for seeing us Mrs. Liu. It was quite kind of you to go out of your way on Christmas," said Devin. "No trouble. I should have already knew you were coming. Julie, you are most welcome to come to my shop again. I would very much like you to sample all 88 tastes we have to offer here. You enjoyed the Tanghulu, so perhaps you would enjoy two tastes to take back with you? Or perhaps eight more instead?" Julie and Devin - December 24th - Afternoon - Ork Underground, Touristville, South of Crossroads Devin carried two bags now. She'd taken eight tastes back with her, mostly confections and fish dishes. Devin turned south at the crossroads and Julie stepped in front of him. "Okay, so what's all this about?" she asked. "They're giving you things," he said. "I've met two business owners and they've went far out of their way to help me and talk to me on Christmas Eve. That's not strange to you?" she asked, her suspicion back now that she was no longer distracted. "You're meeting them for the first time and they want you to keep coming back. They want to make a good impression on you," he said. "What? Why?" she asked. Devin shifted his load to one hand so he could talk with his hand. He began to explain and made wide looking gestures. "Julie, do you know who healed people before Marco came here?" he asked. She shrugged and crossed her arms. "I did. Just me and these skillwires in my head. If they break I can't do so much as stitch someone. The software does it all for me. My nurses too. It's all tech not taught. Schools are expensive and take time we can't afford to waste. So Julie, I'd like you to guess who took care of them before me," said Devin. Julie was silent for a time. "No one," she finally said, quietly. "That's right. Everyone here knows what it's like to go without medical care. Debt is expensive and unlike the old days where I was told when you could discharge that debt, you can't anymore. People went heavy into debt or bled back then. Some died from preventable diseases. A bone that wasn't set right and went septic. A cough that set in and no one could afford medicine. Julie, these are people who remember what it's like to bleed and their only medicine back then was hope. Can you blame them?" he asked. Julie shuffled her feet. "No." "I'm not trying to lecture you, Julie. I'm just making you aware. I wasn't picked to be the doctor because I was the smartest or have the best hands. I was picked because the community trusted me not to run away with it. Cyberware is expensive and times were hard back then," said Devin, and then more throatily. "Real hard." Devin paused as the memories of bad times flowed back in. He shook his head to banish them. "I take care of people during the weekdays but even then they hold out for Sundays and have for over two years since Marco started working here. I can set a bone, but I can't just heal it. There are over 2000 souls here who need care and even with Marco's help we're still stretched thin and he was dumping money into this place. Now that you and sometimes Fuzzy are here he's been able to set some of it aside so I can upgrade my clinic. Good machines can cost...Well...As much as you want. Magic though? A trained awakened can cast for as long as he or she can stay awake. Technology is pretty grand, but there are upper limits on what a skillwire can do besides gut the professional class," he said, bitterly. "I'm a doctor, but not a great doctor and I'll never be a great doctor. I mind the shop and keep people functioning or at best alive until Sunday." They were allowed to have this conversation because traffic wasn't flowing south. In fact no one walked this way and despite the fact that she could see well in the dark as all orks could. She could see that the place wasn't well lit. "So what's down here? I've never heard anyone talk about shops down here," she said. "There are a few shops, but people mostly make things down here. We make as much as we can here, but it all heads north and east and west. They're working hard to put the final orders in before quitting time. I would've taken you down here here straight away if something bad happened. I told people where I was going. That's important since we don't have matrix access so we can't get any comm calls like in Seattle. They're making double time right now so it''s all hands on deck hurt or not. This is where most of our patients come from due to the conditions. I've been meaning to take you down here for a while," said Devin, quietly. "What? You want to take me to a sweat shop on Christmas Eve?" asked Julie, horrified. "Sweat shops. Plural. Julie, automation hits us hard. We have to compete not only with other countries but with robots. That means these people have to work longer hours, they get less pay and they have more dangerous conditions. The shops all need these workers and the workers need the shops. No Julie, I want you to bring something back that I think you'd want more than tasty food, new clothes or shoes. These people walk a long way to get to us since they're at the bottom of the t and you and Marco have been healing them all break. That means they can work hard which means this week has been a good week." Julie and Devin - December 24th - Afternoon - Ork Underground, Touristville, South End, The Shops "...My arm." "Healed the gash in my..." "Reattached my fingers. Couldn't work without..." "So sick I was..." "...My littlest. Remember her with the..." "...Could've toughed it out, but I..." "Couldn't see straight until..." On and on. She healed those who didn't insist on toughing it out. Orks and trolls are tough. They'll say that even as they bleed. Julie took home their thanks for Christmas. She left eight tastes behind for those who were hungry. Though they'd been full meals at one point they were stretched thin until they were just that. Tastes. Tastes of something better. Though it was Christmas so most of it just went into pockets folded into napkins to take home. They worked these jobs so their families could enjoy something better. A taste of something special would remind them of that. Julie and Devin - December 24th - Evening - Ork Underground, Touristville, North End, Manuel's Tex-Mex Julie hadn't cried, but she walked like she might fly apart. Like she was made of brittle porcelain. She'd seen the effects of her spells in the moment and she'd heard their gratitude, but never all at once like that and she'd never understood why the clinic was so important. On an intellectual level she'd understood why, but never on that individual emotional level. During clinic time before church she'd heal them all one after another because there were always so many and it always left her tired. It was different to meet them where they lived. "Sorry," said Devin. "Maybe I shouldn't have." She looked at him and tried to read him. Yes, he was telling the truth, or at least she thought so. "It was...Good," said Julie. "Almost too much but good." "Normally it doesn't happen all at once like that. I think they were surprised to see you is all. It's not often that people go to visit them," he said. "There was no boss like before though," she said. "Bosses cost money. Instead they have leads. The leads know what to do or they don't stay leads for long. They'll elect a boss if they need one for a big project but after that he or she just goes back to being a lead. No useless mouths and no idle hands. If you're old enough to work you work. Everyone works. Even my kids. I'm hoping to earn enough to get them into a better school and finish," he said, softly, sadly. "So north is last?" she asked. "North is last. Mostly the restaurants up there. They're run out of the old shops so that's why they have hookups for heating and plumbing without it being a huge deal. Not just the stuff dug out of the stone but real shops. You still hungry?" he asked. "Yeah. Famished," she said. "Not enough dumplings," he said. She narrowed her eyes him a little but realizing it wasn't a jab at her she shook her head. That suspicion and her reflexes from being bullied were working overtime even now. Even after that outpouring of emotion. "Casting a lot makes me hungry," she admitted. "A lot of them needed healing." "Well restaurant and home then. It's been a big day," he said. It was later in the day so most shoppers were either about to head home or leaving. The crossroads barely took any time to move across at all and the police officer there looked bored. He nodded to Devin. Devin nodded back. Then to her surprise he nodded and Julie and belatedly she nodded back. He smiled. They were about to pass deeper into north end when a smell hooked her. Tex-Mex. The smell of cumin and soy meat. It smelled like home. The shop was nothing to look at. It wasn't even one of the shops that was hooked up. It was off the main drag and so the heat was the improperly scrubbed and vented smells got through. It was literally a hole in the wall restaurant. She found herself drawn there and stood outside of the door. Memories of happier times with her own family washed over her. She still kept it in and bit her lip hard to focus. She couldn't leave though. She loved Tex-Mex, but... "Do you want to go in?" asked Devin. Julie wavered between walking inside or sprinting away. Unable to decide she stood still. It wasn't until someone opened the door to flip the sign, yes, a physical sign from open to closed did the man with the a black, close shaven beard beard and big apron looked at the two outside of his door. "Oh, sorry, we're...Oh, hello pastor," he said. "Hey Manny. How are you?" he asked. "Just fine. Oh, and Julie too. Hey Julie. It's Julie, right? Are you two hungry?" he asked. "Right," she said, shyly. "Hi." She recognized Manny. Not well, but he did come to church. She and Marco usually attended during the morning and Manny and his family attended during the evenings, so since she hung around this week she'd actually just met him yesterday. Manny smiled at them past those big tusks of his and flipped it back from closed to open just long enough for them to get the message before he flipped it back once more. "Just don't tell anyone," he said and winked. Unable to stay frozen, because that would be awkward, the smells of home hit her full blast. She found herself moving forward. Even though those feelings felt like broken glass to handle, she was too lonely not to. The restaurant was in the process of being shut down for the night. The chairs were already all stacked on top of the tables, half the lights were off and a young man was mopping the floor. Manny spoke a few words in Spanish to the young man. The young man began to complain but noticed who the guests were and went into the back. "My son. We can't fire the grill back up. That'd take an hour, but we can make something on our home stove if that's all right," Manny said. "That would be just fine," said Devin. They were lead to a table for mixed ork and troll company and sat down. They were handed real menus which was something of an oddity in a world where most menus were primarily read in augmented reality. The fare was simple. Nothing from Aztland, what used to be Mexico. Tex-Mex was an anachronism now. A world people just said that barely had meaning. "Drinks?" asked Manny. "Just water," he said. "Right, and you, Julie?" "What?" she asked, distractedly. "What would you like to drink?" he asked. With the smells around her and the time of year she said the first thing that came to mind. It was instinct. "Hot horchata, please," she said. "I think I have some soychata. Is that all right?" he asked. She nodded and he left. Horchata was something she drank at home when she was little. It was soy of course, but her dad always insisted on calling it horchata having resisted the slow infiltration of soy into all food far past the time where his resistance was actually relevant. Horchata was a Hispanic drink that was like a thick milk that was spiced with sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. It was great hot days while cold and cold days while hot. Her family had only been ethnically Hispanic in the same way that the UCAS and once the USA used to slowly assimilate nearly all cultures into it before it broke apart. Her family was like that.She had the black hair and caramel skin tone, but her mom and dad only knew a few phrases. Her grandma was the only one left who spoke it and then, Julie realized, she didn't know if grandma was still alive or not. After all, Julie had killed her son, Julie's father and couldn't bare to see what how abeula had taken it. Probably badly. Devin seemed to sense something so he sat in silence with her. He did hold out a hand for her, palm up. She took it and squeezed. Manny came back with drinks. There was a click of a cup on the table and the smell of hot horchata. It wrenched a memory from her and it sliced her heart ragged. Her father rarely spoke Spanish because he barely knew it. He did know a few phrases though. One that came with the smell of hot horchata, the click of a glass on a table, a phrase and a kiss on the cheek. "Te amo," she heard the memory of her father say. "I love you." No kiss. No father. He loved her and then he didn't. He tried to strange her in her hospital bed and she'd killed him first. That painful glass shard of a memory tumbled around inside of her. She hurt. She hurt so bad and had been keeping it in for so long. The secret of her magic she initially kept from her father, the goblinization during a softball game when she began the process to change from a human to an ork, the evil words her father spat at her while her body ached from transformation, his hands around her neck. him dead on the floor, charges filed, too emotionally beaten down to defend herself, prison and all the horrors that came with it, the total humiliation of the female guards touching her to find contraband and even the bullies who seemed so low stakes compared to all of that, but she was shamed by her total impotence in dealing with them. She only knew that she'd been talking or screaming because her throat was raw. She didn't know how long it had been, only that Devin and Manny were praying over her. She wished she said she could've drawn strength from that, but it hurt so bad and so she felt nothing but pain. "I want to go home," she rasped. Much later after the soychata had cooled and the prayers were prayed and the stove cooked food he'd brought was cold Devin and Manny sat with her late into the night in Manny's restaurant. But she had no home to go to. She had no family that would accept her. She only had the school, a few friends and Marco. She belonged nowhere and to no one. She sipped her soychata and soothed her aching throat. "Hell kid, I feel for you," said Manny. "Thanks," she whispered. "And you're how old?" "Sixteen next month." Manny wiped his eyes with a napkin and pocketed it. "My boys aren't even that old yet. All of that and you can still give a drat about us," said Manny. Julie sipped her soychata as she stalled for time. Nope. She still wasn't done bleeding out all that pain and shame. "I mostly just came for Marco," she admitted. "I show up to work for my kiddos," he said. "No everyone is like Devin here and shows up for pure motives. As long as you do it." Devin raised an eyebrow over his glasses and shook his head. Julie's pain was better out than in, but it was still heart-wrenching to witness. "I'm not that good," admitted Devin. "I try, but we're all flawed." "Bad with the good, right? Julie, like you said, you think you belong belong nowhere and to no one, but you know what? You can find a home right here in Touristville," said Manny. "Manny..." started Devin. "What?" asked Julie, and then haltingly, "Like...In a restaurant?" "Pff, anyone would have you here. Restaurant life ain't bad though. If you like it I got three boys I'd love you to meet," said Manny, only half joking. "No, I dug this place out with my buddies ten years ago. For people like you? Hell you wouldn't have to lift a finger. If people know you want to stay they'd do it even if they had to use their bare hands and tusks." Julie laughed a little. It hurt, but it was still relieving to feel something positive. "I still have school," she said. "Man. School. I'd wish I'd been able to go to school. Anyway I'd take two days over one any day of the week though. Christmas miracle, you know?" asked Manny. "What do you think, Devin?" "That felt like too much to ask for. So I didn't. I asked Julie about thinking about taking up a leadership role in the church. She asked about a job. I showed her around since she hadn't strayed far from the abbey and showed her what a grateful community looks like. I even introduced her to business owners who'd love to hire her," he said. "Some of the pillars of our fine community." "I can have a home?" asked Julie, quietly. "Yeah kid, you..." "I want to live in Touristville," interrupted Julie. "You what? Are you sure?" asked Devin. She nodded her head vigorously. Manny smiled. Julie and Marco - December 25th - Midnight - Ork Underground, Touristville, Our Abbey Underground Marco laid back in his chair and snored. He'd passed out again, Julie thought, like he often did, he passed out at work. He was too big to move and looked so peaceful so when she and Devin returned they decided to leave him be though Julie came back with another blanket to lay over him. There was a book open in his lap on top of his own. A real book and old by the looks of it as it didn't look made for trolls. Confessions by Saint Augustine. She was still new to the church so even with her spells she'd probably have a hard time with a book like this. She was able to speak English but sometimes she wondered if she understood what they said at church at times at all. Still, she didn't lack reverence for a book. They didn't make many of these anymore. She found an old bookmark nearby, stuffed it in and set it on the table. She looked at Marco again. He had on some glasses. Augmented reality maybe and hanging from one ear. She cracked a small smile. He looked so cute. She dug inside of his shirt pocket, found the case for his glasses, opened it, carefully took off his glasses, put them in, snapped it shut and put them next to the book easy as that. That seemed to rouse him though from the sound of his chair creaking and his own grunts and groans. "Julie?" he asked, muzzily. "Sorry. Didn't mean to wake you. Go back to sleep," she said. She leaned forward and kissed him on the nose. Then she realized what she did and began to panic internally and immediately berate herself. She must have been tired. He smiled wide. Then he seemed to see her more clearly as he woke up. She looked miserable or at least like she had been. Her eyes were red and puffy. Marco felt a sudden surge of protectiveness for her. He moved and panicked himself as he remembered the book, but there it was next to his glasses case. He held a hand up to his heart and was quietly thankful that he hadn't harmed one of Devin's treasures. "Are you okay?" she asked. "I could ask you the same thing," he said. She thought about it. Really thought about it. "Overwhelming, but not bad. Or at least more good than bad. At least I think so," she said, thoughtfully. "I'm glad. At least more glad than sad then," he joked. Julie giggled softly. Then on a whim she leaned forward and kissed him. It was quick and she felt stupid after the fact, but there it was. Stealing her first kiss ranked low on his list of crimes. Her thoughts almost spiraled into the intensely negative when something strange happened. Marco kissed her back. Both kisses were fumbling and awkward. Despite that Julie's heart surged and happiness filled her to the brim for the first time in years. They would not be the first nor the last teens to make out in a church, but they didn't get caught either. Eventually they stopped to catch their breath. "You like me?" she asked, stupidly. "Yeah. You like me?" he asked, stupidly. Feelings make idiots of us all. "Te amo," she whispered. "What was that?" he asked. Big idiots. "Yeah, I really like you," she said a little too quickly. "Um...I didn't get anything for Christmas for you. Sorry." "You're present enough," he said. She blushed and butterflies flew about in her belly. "So what happened?" he asked. "Met a bunch of people. Went everywhere. Got offered to stay. I decided to stay. You know, on weekends. Manny said it. He goes to the later church meetings. I have a home now. Or at least I'll have a home," she whispered. "Wow, really?" he asked. "Yeah, unless he was kidding." "Oh no. No no. He's not kidding," said Marco, gravely. "Manny is going to tell everyone. You'll pick your spot and they'll have it dug out for you inside of a week." "Wow. Really?" she asked, now her turn. "Yeah. Really. It's a relief. A miracle," he said. Tension that Julie hadn't noticed before melted away from Marco's face. "What? What am I missing?" she asked. Marco hesitated before speaking. He opened his mouth once, twice and only on the third time did he say something. "I um...I don't know where I'm going to be after this summer," said Marco. "Dad has been vague. He just says he has plans for me. Big plans. I don't know what's going to happen." Julie's heart dropped through the floor. She knew he was a senior. She'd never asked him what he was going to do after he graduated. Not even once. She was too afraid to know. Now she was simply afraid. "That's not fair," she whispered. Suddenly indignant at her happiness being snatched away she felt like she was being bullied. Not by Minuet, Roberta or Skylar, but by the world. However after another cry this didn't keep her from making out with Marco, again, in the church, again and in the morning everyone in Touristville would know that Julie Freeman, awakened healer would do something not even Marco had done. She'd move into Touristville. It was a Christmas miracle. CYOA Time So a lot of stuff is happening. We have two choices to prepare for the next arc. Or one if we decide to bail. Bailing is still an option despite me writing all of this. No railroads no masters. However there will be consequences for going back. 1. Julie experiences victory for the first time in years, but it's bittersweet. Marco likes her back. She can still back out if she wants to, but at this point it'll be impossible to do so without damaging her reputation with both Marco and the Touristville orks. It's only a matter of how badly we damage our relationship with them, not if at this point. On the positive side Marco will actually help Julie get her clinic off the ground and will spend his time with her on the weekends to help train her. This means she'll be spending quite a lot of time with him. 2. We'll also choose a place to live. Touristville has five main areas. In the west are where high end goods are sold. In the east they primarily deal in imports. The south is where everything is made. The north is where the restaurants are and the crossroads sits in the middle of all of them. Each area has a practical and narrative effect. The narrative effect is hidden. In the west Julie would be able to get high end goods cheaper. In the east Julie would be able to get items not normally for sale. In the south the orks and trolls don't have anything, but they would be the most grateful. The north would probably make Julie happier since it's a happy and prosperous community. The crossroads has no practical effect. Choose one. Julie rolls 5 net hits on 10 dice to judge the community's intentions. For some reason Julie's decision to stay here has provoked a serious sense of relief and joy in not only Marco and Devin, but from everyone. This means that she can ask why. Touristville is a poor community of about 2000 orks and trolls though poor is relative. The amount of awakened that actually work there are small and most move out because they can earn more elsewhere. Julie has confessed her feelings to Marco and it turns out that they're mutual. However there is a big caveat. He's not sure about where he's going to go to university or if he even can. Marco has not been talking about his situation because it's been depressing him. It goes as follows. 1. He is graduating this year. He's a senior after all. This was explained early on in the story. 2. He was always reaching out to people to try and find someone to shoulder the responsibility if or when he left. He never said anything because he'd given up hope that anyone would want to. 3. He was trying to convince someone from his school or one of his contacts to shoulder the burden. He wasn't trying to manipulate Julie. If Julie feels like she's been cheated she has only manipulated herself. 4. Marco might be leaving after the summer. He wants to attend a divinity school locally but his father and corporation are pressuring him to attend university in the UCAS proper. This would be on the east coast as Seattle is the only property on the west coast which would leave him thousands of miles away from here. Their feelings don't have a shelf life on them. Instead they'll be plagued with uncertainty. 5. Mechanically right now his chances of staying are 2 in 6 and will never clear 5 in 6 or go below 1 in 6. He always has a chance of leaving and he always has a chance of staying. If he leaves he'll be gone from the Seattle area save for the occasional appearance or phone conversation though everyone will still keep him as a contact. We can't make up his mind for him. We can only influence him and our choices will push that decision either up or down. Attempting to keep Marco in Seattle is going to be one of Julie's side plots come arc three. However Julie confessing to Marco and being well received was going to be a seriously tough sell because if she didn't care enough about Touristville to pitch in, IE sharing his values which is important in maintaining a relationship. If she hadn't done this the odds of him staying would've stayed low. Actions have consequences both good and bad.
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Oct 24, 2017 10:44
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Welp. I'm going to take tomorrow off. Including the instructions at the bottom that was 7100 words. That was a crazy amount of work to do in one sitting. I'm dumb.
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Oct 24, 2017 10:46
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Good job on the huge post, IP. You've earned some rest. 1. Not bailing. This might be a lot of work but Julie needs this. She doesn't have a home and Blake Island sure as heck doesn't fit the bill. 2. I thought about voting for one of the more concrete benefits for Julie, but after thinking about it the symbolic significance of having her apartment be in the Crossroads feels right, in a number of ways. And when she's not at the clinic, at school, or getting into something dicey she's in equal reach to just about everybody in Touristville when they need her.
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Oct 24, 2017 12:32
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I think Julie will stay near the Tex Mex restaurant. It’s hard but it feels like home. I imagine she’ll try and learn more about her hispanic heritage as well as her current heritage because it’s something she desperately needs, though not in the toxic way her father needed it. She’s going to try and convince Marco to stay.
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Oct 24, 2017 12:59
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VanSandman posted:I think Julie will stay near the Tex Mex restaurant. It’s hard but it feels like home. I imagine she’ll try and learn more about her hispanic heritage as well as her current heritage because it’s something she desperately needs, though not in the toxic way her father needed it. quote:Tried as an adult for second degree manslaughter. No visible wounds to speak of. After all, bruises are the least of what one goes through when goblinizing. She'd killed her father. Guilty on all charges. She didn't fight a one of them though her public defender told her that she had a serious case for getting off the hook. But what was out there? More pain? To see her family and their hateful eyes stabbing her with accusations? No, she didn't want that. She just wanted to stay here and be forgotten. Too scared to live, too cowardly to die. I think this is when Julie not only finds a home but also a new family, one of her own chosing now, as well as a purpose. This is why I'd say she sets up her clinic in the south, closest to the people that need her most. I figure she will try to finally reject her family for good and build her new life here. She will also try to make it work with Marco, even if he does leave at the end of the year, so no to bailing.
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Oct 24, 2017 15:39
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Agreed, we're definitely staying, and in the south. We've got a new family, and the south is where they need us most. Also, it's nice and quiet, which I figure Julie would appreciate. We're not gonna get rich off scamming tourists, but we're gonna have our solitude and the most grateful neighbors imaginable, which is way more important. We need somewhere to fit in, not somewhere to get loaded.
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Oct 24, 2017 21:06
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Ice Phisherman posted:No she did not rush at all. Rushing would be unseemly. Mrs. Liu simply arrived quickly and promptly. Awesome; you nailed the cultural norm. Ice Phisherman posted:Mrs. Liu knew exactly what she meant but would not correct someone she wished to curry favor with. That would be impolite. Impoliteness was intolerable. She was relieved when Devin stepped in with the correct word. Letting her openly struggle would also be impolite. Silly gwai lo. Awesome x Awesome. Gwai Lo are a silly lot, by and large; impoliteness is in fact intolerable. Its more acceptable to reap a bloodline than be impolite to them. For a Gawi Lo, you seem to get these things @Ice.   Ice Phisherman posted:She leaned forward and kissed him on the nose. Oh Julie, sweetie, no . . . Ice Phisherman posted:"You like me?" she asked, stupidly. No, drat you Ice, No No No, don't you do this to us and to Julie. The Fuzzy and Sasha arc was sweet and innocent, I can abide by that. Julie and Marco won't work, can't work, and you're not dragging me behind that pick-up truck. Ice Phisherman posted:CYOA Time Wonderful update all around, probably one of your best so far. The research, the emotions, the character development, nothing felt rushed or contrived. I hate tanghulu (all Chinese sweets suck when compared to western confections), and, you still made me want some of the 88 tastes. Vote: Bail Yeah, I know this isn't popular, and, I have to vote with my heart. I want a better life for Julie, and that means not getting sucked into the Underground life. Yes, its a noble cause and all, and, Julie has it in her to be so much more. I don't want her to just grab at the first sign of acceptance and community. Julie, dedicate yourself to the Blade Island education, work with Julian to see if you can get higher educated, fight for a place in the surface world, then come back to make a difference in the underground. Don't just be a high-school educated free health clinic administrator for the rest of your life. Gandhi was a London trained Barrister before starting his civil rights career. That's the path I want for Julie.
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Oct 24, 2017 21:32
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CourValant posted:
I honestly thought Marco was going to turn out to be gay given what that one mean girl said to Julie way back when, and Marco ignoring Julie's advances. I didn't think he was that oblivious. I agree with CourValant's sweets remark. Voting bail not because I like the option, but to keep the vote close. South makes the most sense if Julie is staying. The update was good. Hope you are getting better Ice Phisherman.
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Oct 24, 2017 22:46
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I'm voting Stay because even if leaving would put Julie on a more prosperous life path, I think this will put her on the happier one. And lord knows this child has had so much misery suffered. What she needs is happiness. An end to loneliness. She needs to feel like a good person again. A worthwhile person. And that's what the Underground is. Even if it doesn't end up getting where she lives for the rest of her life, it's what she needs this year at the very least. And she's aware of that too. As for location? The crossroads, of course. There's something deeply and meaningfully symbolic about crossroads. A magic shop located on the crossroads all the moreso. And, adding on to that, she's at a crossroads herself right now too, and she wants to be in the center of a community, so it makes a good motif too.
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Oct 24, 2017 23:37
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jagadaishio posted:I'm voting Stay because even if leaving would put Julie on a more prosperous life path, I think this will put her on the happier one. And lord knows this child has had so much misery suffered. What she needs is happiness. An end to loneliness. Agreed!!!
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Oct 25, 2017 01:56
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Oh gently caress I've caught up with the thread. Took me two weeks of off and on reading but we got there. Ice this thing is incredible. When I started reading I thought it was going to be some dark Harry Potter garbage but this has been so, so much more. I'm kind of sad I caught up, but now I get to participate! Hell yes. For the first time since Goblinization Julie has found people that genuinely want her around, and not just because they want to use her, but because they see her as one of them. Family. Julie can't walk away from that. She stays. As for the location of her home, I have to agree with The Crossroads. Both because it's a central location making it easy for anyone to reach her, and because it's thematically goddamned appropriate for where Julie is right now and I am nothing if not a sucker for the dramatic.
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Oct 25, 2017 09:00
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Stay, Crossroads
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Oct 25, 2017 09:28
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I think she'll stay, but rather than picking any one particular sub-district she'll stick to the crossroads, which kinda represents her current mindset. She's at a juncture where she is going to have to make some serious choices about who she is and what she does and I don't think she's fully certain enough yet to commit completely to a particular path.
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Oct 25, 2017 10:20
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CourValant posted:Awesome; you nailed the cultural norm. I'm a xenophile so I understand other cultures fast. My family housed tons of exchange students when I was a kid and that helped me understand people who had different values than I did. Never any Chinese students, but learning about other cultures stuck with me. Even then I still did my research. Chinese superstition around numbers, Fung Shui for a restaurant, politeness, how Chinese tourists behave and their foods as well. It doesn't make sense unless you know what you're looking for, but if you're familiar with it it stands out like a beacon. Even the carafe of water signifies that they're about to do a business deal, or at least that's how Mrs. Liu sees it. That said I don't go too deep because if I do I start making mistakes by taking logical leaps which does not work with other cultures. All of this passes you by, but seems vaguely familiar while you do if you're not familiar with the culture. I'm trying to create verisimilitude. The seeming of being real, because when I target people by introducing stuff like this that seeming becomes far more believable for them which makes them believe everything else all the harder. quote:No, drat you Ice, No No No, don't you do this to us and to Julie. The Fuzzy and Sasha arc was sweet and innocent, I can abide by that. Julie and Marco won't work, can't work, and you're not dragging me behind that pick-up truck. Let me pull back the curtain for just a moment and reveal to you a trick as old as the silent film industry. Maybe even older. Without spoiling too much I'm not going to show Julie and Marco's relationship. I'm going to show people's reactions to it. This is me experimenting again. In movies when something is happening sometimes what they'll do is not show what's going on. They'll show people's reactions to what's going on. Your own mind fills in the blanks. You fill in your own story. The monster is always scarier when you don't see it. Julie is a traumatized nearly sixteen year old girl and Marco is a rather staid pacifist (though that's being challenged) who has very conservative views about gender roles. They're both inexperienced and not totally compatible but there's something there. I'm not going to doom it outright. Instead one will confide in a friend and seek help. Their relationship will exist almost entirely in your own head. So I know what's going on, but the audience doesn't. They can only infer. I imagine both Julie and Marco to be private people and unreliable narrators, but they will confide in their friends because they both don't know what to do. We're going to fire arrows into the dark and see if we can hit the mark. Success is not them being in a relationship or not, but them being happy and continuing to be friends at the least. So those are the stakes. Normally in literature you show don't tell. I agree with that. Instead I'm going to show something else. I like to experiment. This is just me doing it again. So to address your concerns you're not going to know exactly what's going on. You'll only be able to guess. You're not going to see Julie being furious and damaged, internalizing her anger or trying to work through it. You're not going to see Marco's bubbling anger or Julie being chafed by iron age gender roles and patriarchal expectations. Either none or all of these things will happen and the intensity that they'll happen at will be up to you to parse out. It'll give us some distance so I'm not tempted to ramp up the emotional intensity to eleven. The monster is a lot scarier when you don't see it. Maybe it truly was scary. Or maybe it wasn't scary at all, but overblown and lame. Or just a shadow on a wall. MinutePirateBug posted:I honestly thought Marco was going to turn out to be gay given what that one mean girl said to Julie way back when, and Marco ignoring Julie's advances. I didn't think he was that oblivious. I actually thought about making him gay, but I left it up in the air until that post. Marco is nine feet tall, around 400 pounds and is surrounded by humans and elves on the island with people he is quite physically incompatible with as well as emotionally. When we see him interact with people of his own race it's always in a church capacity with people who he feels a duty towards. It means that Julie was in a strange position as someone who he doesn't feel a duty towards who spends a lot of time with him who he could possibly be compatible with. For some people there's a sort of attraction by proximity that quickly fades once they're no longer close by being physically present. That may be this or may not be. It'll be fun to explore. RickVoid posted:Oh gently caress I've caught up with the thread. Took me two weeks of off and on reading but we got there. Welcome to the thread. Glad you enjoy it. Tell a friend.  Seriously though, glad you stuck with it. It's a lot to read even if you're having fun. -- That said it looks like the crossroads is it. There are no known benefits for the crossroads and we a purposefully no taking access to high end goods, imported goods, extra happiness or gratitude. We situate ourselves at the center of things. We benefit everyone without ending up in their back yard. After this I'm going to write another two parter. I figure that will be the format. It'll be the Olivers talking together about Fuzzy, Sasha, themselves and Ares, and then Christmas day in Mammoth Lakes California. California is another country by the by, but Ares is near everywhere. This is Fuzzy's first time seeing stuff like snow, being in another country and seeing the mountains of up close. Not writing immediately. Still a little tired. I'll post something in the evening. Ice Phisherman fucked around with this message at 15:43 on Oct 25, 2017 |
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Oct 25, 2017 15:30
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I never really caught Marco being weird about gender roles, but I guess we haven't really seen too many situations where that'd be relevant. Be interesting to see everything play out, I somehow find myself really liking Marco despite disagreeing on almost everything. I think it shines through that he's still a fundamentally good person despite our philosophical differences, and it takes a damned good writer to sell that.
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Oct 25, 2017 15:36
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Crazycryodude posted:I never really caught Marco being weird about gender roles, but I guess we haven't really seen too many situations where that'd be relevant. Be interesting to see everything play out, I somehow find myself really liking Marco despite disagreeing on almost everything. I think it shines through that he's still a fundamentally good person despite our philosophical differences, and it takes a damned good writer to sell that. Part of understanding people who are different than you is being able to understand who they are as individuals, as groups and even perhaps like and respect people who you're not predisposed to get along with. When you drill down hard enough you see them as individuals and not as a monolith, and you see the nuance and that their tribe isn't always in 100% agreement, but mostly just facing the same direction against opposing forces only long enough to address the threat. If you are part of the opposing tribe you're almost always going to see them as a monolith incapable of anything save for group think. That's how they protect themselves. Christians and Christianity is incredibly fractious after all. There's a world of different between a Jesus Freak who can be open and honest and even can admit that they're wrong or don't a thing with no stage production or flash versus some pampered, painted, gleaming teeth prosperity gospel con artist who treats Sundays like rock concerts and has rock star values complete with a water slide to the baptismal pool. If you ever see anyone totally beat all comers in the culture war expect the knives to come out almost immediately as new tribes are identified and rallied around and new monoliths are made up to convince everyone else to all face the same way. We're humans and we just do this poo poo. Ice Phisherman fucked around with this message at 21:23 on Oct 25, 2017 |
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Oct 25, 2017 15:49
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Ares is one of the two dominant megacorps in North America, alongside Aztechnology, right? I mean, NeoNet and Horizon are both based there, and there are no megas that don't have some kind of significant sway, but Ares is huge in former-USA nation-states (UCAS, CAS, CalFree) and Aztechnology has more or less free reign in Aztlan (Mexico) and all of its conquered territory, yeah? Between that and the fact that there's a high speed rail between Seattle and the (formerly occupied by Imperial Japan) San Francisco, you'd have to start going into the NANs or the Tirs before I'd be surprised about a vacation destination for the Olivers. Anyway, Julie/Marco is going to be a really fun train wreck in a way that Fuzzy/Sasha probably won't be. I think that, as essential as Marco was in getting Julie through those hard, early months, it's the Underground that's going to see her through to a better place in her life.
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Oct 25, 2017 19:50
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jagadaishio posted:Ares is one of the two dominant megacorps in North America, alongside Aztechnology, right? I mean, NeoNet and Horizon are both based there, and there are no megas that don't have some kind of significant sway, but Ares is huge in former-USA nation-states (UCAS, CAS, CalFree) and Aztechnology has more or less free reign in Aztlan (Mexico) and all of its conquered territory, yeah? Ares buys really heavily into that America first idea. Not just this or that nation state, but the idea of America. They bought NASA too. Anyway even though I didn't get anything out on Tuesday I'm going to see if I can sneak in an update today. Writing now.
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Oct 25, 2017 21:14
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Aztechnology is the closest thing to a final boss in Shadowrun, too, since they all but openly use Blood Magic and human sacrifice to keep the other corps from dismantling them.
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Oct 25, 2017 21:31
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Yeah aren't they essentially Cartel Combine, LLC built off the surviving big three? Not surprised their human rights record is rear end.
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Oct 25, 2017 21:36
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The irony of Aztechnology is that they basically invented the current model of soy farming/processing. In Shadowrun, almost all potential farmland has either been blighted by pollution or overrun by spirits and other monsters. Humanity would have starved if not for the Aztech agri-blocks, and they continue to offer not just massive quantities of cheap but nutritionally complete processed foods, but cheap clothes, affordable electronics, and other low-end consumer goods. I mean, they own the drat Stuffer Shacks. There's a reason that Aztechnology has such good PR that most people collectively choose to ignore or disbelieve all of those blood magic rumors.
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Oct 26, 2017 00:06
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Matt and Charlotte Oliver – December 25th 2074 – Morning - Mammoth Lakes, California Matt Oliver, the man who was responsible for the well-being of over a million residents of Seattle by managing over 10,000 police officers as well as its local support staff, one of Seattle’s thirty districts put his socks on like all the rest of us. That is to say he did it one sock at a time. His arm itched and he couldn’t scratch it. That was normal as he’d lost it during a raid years and years ago and had it replaced with a cybernetic arm which resisted scratching despite the fact that his real arm, now gone for for over a decade was missing. He thought it was ironic as he didn’t rule his district with an iron fist, but a velvet glove. At least whenever he could. He looked to his wife, Charlotte, who hadn’t woken up yet, and kissed her on the forehead. She stirred and murmured but didn't wake up just yet. He thought of his daughter. He half expected her to rush in and tell him that yes, it was Christmas and yes, they should get under the tree right now and open everything. Then he had to remind himself that no, she was not twelve anymore and no, she was not going to wake him up at six in the morning and no, she wasn't going to wait up all night for Santa Claus. She was sixteen now. A young woman. She’d had her quinceanera what seemed like just last year after all at his mother in law's suggestion. They hadn’t planned it as the old ways were mostly vestigial and replaced by Ares ways, but still, tradition is good to preserve. “You’re getting old, Matt,” he said, softly. And so one of the corporate nobility pulled on a big, dumb, green sweater with a brown reindeer on it over his head to cover his blocky chest and despite the static his hair was cut short so there was nothing to muss. He felt that static in his hand though. He’d have to get that checked. A short time later his wife Charlotte was awake. Sasha took after her, willowy and tall, caramel skinned, pretty but not beautiful, though she could be if she wanted to be at least physically. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder though and to him she was most beautiful. She was his rock. She was the love of his life and the mother of their only child. Neither of them had been born into corporate nobility, so they had something most of them didn’t. They loved each other and could lean on one another, and despite the upper management’s slight distaste and occasional ribbing he got for loving his wife he wondered if they really understood what they were missing. She and their daughter were why he did the things he did. They were why he got up in the morning. They were his pool of strength that he could draw upon when he felt low. Her long, black hair was a little frizzy from the red and white snowman sweater she wore, she had sleep in her eyes and wore comfortable pajama bottoms. She’d later fuss over her appearance, but to him she was most beautiful. They kissed and he waited for the well-trodden argument to start. They'd had it no less than a dozen times and would probably keep having it until the trip was over. “Did we have to bring the barrens girl?” she asked, sleepily. She was smoothing the static frizz out of her hair. “You could have said no. I play the bad guy at work enough,” he joked. “Besides, she has a name you know.” “Fuzzy, right,” she sighed. “Not even a proper last name. Barely a first one.” Like a dance this argument had steps. Sometimes they were improvised, but Matt Oliver knew his wife well enough to anticipate where she was leading him. So he decided to take the lead instead. “She may earn herself one then,” he said. “Don’t you start with that,” she huffed. “It’s premature, but let’s face the facts. This is why Sasha had been rejecting all of our suitors out of hand. Sure she’d go on a date or two, or at least feign it, but our little girl doesn’t like boys,” he said, gently. “I don’t like it.” He could really tell that she didn't. It was bizarre to him to find that his wife had a prejudice that most had abandoned almost half a century ago. The holdouts were usually the worst of the worst, but he loved her for better or for worse. “You’re being old fashioned,” he said. “It was old fashioned in your mother’s time too. The times change and if you want to connect with our daughter you need to connect with who and what she cares about.” Husband and wife sat on the bed they'd left minutes earlier. He’d been trying to coax his wife towards acceptance of the fact for a while. Not of Fuzzy exactly, but his daughter could certainly do worse. Much worse in fact. No, he tried to get her to accept Sasha for who she was. He continued. “We always knew that when we didn't have any more time for children after our first. Sasha was always going to be special, but we never knew just how special. It’s not like it was back when I was a detective. We’re in a different place and we have different rules. I can’t allow Sasha to marry out of the family because that would put me in someone else’s power. I haven’t climbed as high as I think I can yet, so instead of marrying up, Sasha, yes, and as bad as this sounds, marries down. It’s not a terrible thing though. There are plenty of talented people in the world and we’re not going to waste her on some useless suit’s son or daughter, but someone of merit. Someone talented.” Charlotte's shoulders slumped and she sighed miserably. This was not at all what she imagined for her daughter. This happened to other people, but just a few short months ago she’d become other people. “If you forbid her she’d listen to you,” she said, glumly. “And she'd hate me. Which is why I won’t, because I’ve only got so many years of her actually listening to me, and that’s going to just keep slipping away. Someday we might need to forbid her from doing something and maybe, just maybe if we treat her right she'll listen because we were fair to her in the past. Nita, we raised a good daughter. She's intelligent, loyal and dedicated. In fact she reminds someone I once met,” he said. “Flatterer,” she chided, but smiled anyway. “Guilty.” They kissed and embraced. Their sweaters clung together before pulling apart with a light crackling sound. “Besides, if Fuzzy was a man you’d be cooing over him and already pestering Sasha if she ever thought she’d have children,” he teased. “I would not,” she fibbed. “You'd at least be thinking it. So you’re saying that this young, talented man who came from nothing, good in a scrap, pleasant in conversation, so hungry for knowledge that he went from I’m told illiterate to a sixth grade reading level in four months, knows violence and the hunt and more importantly, restraint, and took on three grown men each twice his size and won to stop a murder and you’d just let him walk away? I think his instincts were wrong at the end when he endangered himself to heal those criminals, but that’s a matter of taste and character and not entirely wrong. I’d be afraid you’d leave me for him,” he continued to tease. “Matt!” she said, scandalized. She took the joke though and lightly smacked his good arm. Her smile was wide now. “Seriously. It’s like that young man stepped out of a story book,” he said. “Now just imagine that he was a she. You get Fuzzy, or at least someone like her. The odds are she won’t stick around forever, but if Sasha has a talent for attracting talented suitors we should nurture and support that. Despite her beginnings Fuzzy is the type of girl you bring home to meet the parents. That's us. That means accepting her choices even though they’re not perfect. Our daughter is probably never going to be someone gifted, but she can keep what we’ve both scrabbled and scraped for if she finds someone talented to help her.” “I think you underestimate her,” she said, and lifted her chin proudly. He paused. He’d been doing so well and now he overstepped. He was so used to casually breaking down the traits of others at his job, securing talent, managing and nurturing that talent that he was probably being fair in his assessment. Not to mention that his daughter’s disability, her inability to shut out the astral would severely limit what work she could do as an awakened. Working every day with criminals damaged one’s soul enough. He knew that as a former detective, but he shuddered to think what his daughter would be like if she tried to follow in his footsteps and was forced to look upon the souls of the monsters he dealt with daily. “Maybe you’re right,” he lied. That lie seemed to be convincing, because Charlotte's chin tilted back down again, and she was quietly satisfied for being right in a conversation she knew she’d been losing up until that moment. Matt decided to change the subject. “Good news. Christmas bonuses are particularly fat this year. It’s all in stock as well. No creds, which is strange. I’ve heard the scuttlebutt around the office. Don’t tell anyone, but I think our CEO is going to leonize,” he said. His wife’s hand went up to her mouth and then she hugged her husband hard. He hugged her back, careful of his cybernetic arm so as not to hurt her. They kissed and pulled apart once more, sweaters clinging. “I thought he wouldn’t have the time for it,” she said, excitedly. “A new treatment just made it out of beta. He can do it at home. It’ll be outrageously expensive but Mr. Cross won’t have to give up his position. Personally I’m hoping he takes himself internally down to twenty-five years and maybe even a little younger, but rolls back only enough to keep the grey in his temples. Age does distinguish a man,” he mused. “Restore his vigor but keep his distinguishment. I personally think that would be best.” His wife ran a hand up his thigh and she smirked at him. “Age does distinguish a man indeed,” she teased. “And the one I love is about to have that youthful vigor tested.” His wife stood up, locked the door and flipped on the white noise generator embedded into the bed so as not to disturb the girls. Yes, Sasha was too old to disturb her parents on Christmas morning. She wasn’t twelve anymore after all, and perhaps that wasn’t entirely a bad thing. Fuzzy, Sasha, Matt and Charlotte – December 25th 2074 – Morning - Mammoth Lakes, California Sasha noticed the good mood her parents had. Their auras were buzzing with happiness and the remnants of several shades of love from the deep, emotional connectedness to the carnal. Knowing her parents those feelings wouldn’t fade out for hours. She tried hard not to think about how her parents just had sex. Really hard. Really…Really hard. This mostly meant focusing on Fuzzy. As was tradition her parents wore silly, heavy sweaters picked out by her mom’s grandma who couldn’t make it this year, but this was their way of staying connected as a family despite years and miles. They’d call her later. Her heart ached with a little sadness at the thought of her other grandma, her father’s mother, her abuela, who passed just a few years ago. She and Fuzzy shared the blanket she’d been gifted from her as they sat next to the Christmas tree. Sasha wore a red and green sweater with a Christmas tree on it with fuzzy poof balls resembling decorations on its woolen boughs, and it seems that her grandmother had been apprised of Fuzzy joining them. Fuzzy wore a dark blue sweater. What was presumably Mount Rainier was in back a familiar man in a familiar sleigh pulled by familiar reindeer as he flew over it. “Reindeer over Rainier,” joked Sasha. “That’s corny,” said Fuzzy. “I like corny,” said Sasha, piously. Charlotte Oliver looked at Fuzzy as she sipped her cocoa. With her short, blonde hair, small frame and slight feminine features entirely covered by a both a thick sweater and a blanket she could pretend for the space of a conversation that Fuzzy was a man. She tried, thought about it and found that yes, that actually helped. She fetched the presents from under the tree and so Fuzzy received her first gift ever. Puppy, who sat at her and Sasha’s feet sniffed at it and even received a bone with a bow which was promptly removed. Fuzzy smiled and Puppy chewed happily, and she petted his flank. His tail wagged in response. So what do corporate lords and ladies give one another for Christmas? What do you get for the person who can have anything? Well the Olivers had a secret. They didn’t come from money so they didn’t get the new shiny. They didn’t stack their presents high. Instead they gave thoughtfully. Matt got a custom rifle fit to his body’s specifications for hunting. It had a level-action which meant jams would be rare as rare and as he’d learn later there was something satisfying about chambering another round. There was not a single piece of tech inside of it past the 19th century either. Charlotte received her favorite movie and was told that she’d get what was most precious to her as she got older and the demands upon her family were higher. She’d get family time. Later they’d all watch the movie. A little dated, sure, and it wasn’t even trideo. It wasn’t even in color even, but she knew all of Casablanca by heart. Sasha received a new pair of glasses. The old ones were bulky after all with thick frames, but these looked classy and sleek, or at least Sasha’s mother hoped. There’d been some discussion between Matt and Charlotte about reminding their daughter of her disability during Christmas, but Charlotte insisted. Sasha was overjoyed, put them on and and hugged her parents. They didn’t know it, but half the joy was having the excuse to not have to look at her parents’ auras as they were still strong from an early morning romp. Fuzzy looked at her present after carefully opening and saving the paper. She folded it into a square and stuck it into her pocket. However she didn’t know what she was looking at. It had a handle, some sort of hollow tube which fed into a suction tube or injector or something, currently capped and a screen for a readout. She read the tag. “Happy birthday, from: Sasha.” “I think you got this wrong. It’s Christmas. I don’t know when my birthday is,” said Fuzzy. “Not yet,” she said, smugly. “It was Sasha’s idea,” said Matt, “It’s Ares tech. Normally Knight-Errant uses it on hard cases who won’t tell us anything. I disabled this one’s wireless capabilities so you won’t get uploaded to the network, but…” “It can tell how old someone is,” interrupted Sasha, excitedly. “To the day. It measures telomeres and scans other genetic markers to estimate your age. I learned about them at school.” Minutes later after a slight pinch the girls crowded around the screen. Normally they’d be able to read it wirelessly, but like they said it was disabled. It finished and displayed the results. They scrolled down and found her age. “February third, 2057?” asked Sasha. “Wait, you’re two months older than me?” It was Fuzzy’s turn to smile smugly now. It didn’t last though. They hugged hard and kissed. Fuzzy’s Christmas present was a small piece of her identity. The Olivers knew how to give gifts. They did Christmas right. Yes, Charlotte would think, it was good that she was imagining that Fuzzy was a young man. Yes, definitely a young man. It was much too early for wine. Hours later when the movie was watched, the presents were away, his wife was out and the girls were away Matt checked the scanner. He felt bad for suggesting this and tricking his daughter, but he had to know. With a small amount of tinkering he re-enabled the wireless capability and checked the data. No, it’d be better to call. So he did. He called the unlucky young man who was manning the post on Christmas. “Hey boss,” said a man on the line. “What can I do for you?” “Hey Jerry. I just sent a file into the system. Confirmation code incoming. Is there any data on her?” he asked. “One second,” said Jerry. Jerry checked the files and shook his head. “Nothing. Not so much as jaywalking. There’s no data linked to any crimes at all…Oh wait, wait no.” Matt clenched his teeth and fists. That protective streak inside of him roared and he began to strategize. Matt the man disappeared as his cop brain took over. “Yeah, turns out she was linked to attacking some gang members a few months back. Looks like she stopped a murder. One of them looks like he’s getting out early for good behavior, but the other two are in for ten and twenty-five,” said Jerry. “You got yourself a little hero here. A tiny one too. Only sixteen. Wow.” Matt’s cop brain halted and went back to sleep. He sighed with relief. He wouldn’t have to ruin Christmas. “Nothing else?” he asked. “No sir, nothing,” said Jerry. “Would you mind deleting it? Had to check up on one of my daughter’s friends. You know how it is,” said Matt. “I know how it goes,” said Jerry. “Yes sir, it’s gone.” “Thanks Jerry. Oh um…Did you get that stock bonus for Christmas?” he asked, casually. “Yes sir. Sure did,” he said. “You may want to purchase more,” he said. “Can’t say what it is. It’s only a hunch, but those hunches got me where I am today after all. It may be a good idea to invest.” “Thank you sir, I’ll do that,” said Jerry. “Merry Christmas, Jerry,” said Matt. “Merry Christmas, sir,” said Jerry. CYOA Time Fuzzy and Sasha are going to explore Mammoth Lakes California. It’s a ski resort town, but it also has other stuff to do. It’s also dog friendly and they can basically go anywhere with their owners so long as they’re well behaved, though not all restaurants are fully so. There’s fresh snow on the ground and the town is hopping with activity. What should they do with a full day to themselves? Do they bring Puppy or not? Broad strokes please. This is of course the feel good chapter. Kenji's is after this. Also I didn't edit so I can see my friend tonight. Please excuse any problems. I wanted to get this out but it's 3000 words and it's getting late. I'll edit later when he and his family go to bed.
Ice Phisherman fucked around with this message at 02:18 on Feb 7, 2018 |
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Oct 26, 2017 01:22
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Serious question - has Fuzzy ever seen snow? Even aside from Seattle's unique climate, cities - especially cyberpunk ones - have enough heat waste that she might have never seen any stick to the ground. This could be an adorable opportunity for Fuzzy to be a survivalist fish who has no idea how to handle this kind of environment with Sasha to guide her through it. In other words, let's see Sasha teach Fuzzy how to ski in a couples ski lesson. Maybe do some cross-country skiing as an excuse to take Puppy on a good, long, exhausting hike after they try out the slopes?
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Oct 26, 2017 03:15
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jagadaishio posted:Serious question - has Fuzzy ever seen snow? Even aside from Seattle's unique climate, cities - especially cyberpunk ones - have enough heat waste that she might have never seen any stick to the ground. This could be an adorable opportunity for Fuzzy to be a survivalist fish who has no idea how to handle this kind of environment with Sasha to guide her through it. Probably not. At least not up close. You can see snow on Mount Reiner but that's it. Like I wrote before the Pineapple Express, that stream of warm water that comes from Hawaii and beyond keeps the area warm during the winter and cool during the summer. It rarely gets below 40 in the Seattle area.
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Oct 26, 2017 03:25
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Ice Phisherman posted:CYOA Time They bring Puppy. They go on snowshoe hikes, drink plenty of hot cocoa, take a sleigh ride, have a nice meal, and spend some time in front of a fire under a few blankets.
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Oct 26, 2017 05:15
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Dinner with mom too.
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Oct 26, 2017 10:14
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HiHo ChiRho posted:Dinner with mom too. I wonder if 'Mom' is why Sasha put Fuzzy in the biker costume? At first I thought it was Sasha's preference; maybe Sasha knows her Mom's feelings and wants to steer Fuzzy in that direction?
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Oct 26, 2017 16:12
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CourValant posted:I wonder if 'Mom' is why Sasha put Fuzzy in the biker costume? At first I thought it was Sasha's preference; maybe Sasha knows her Mom's feelings and wants to steer Fuzzy in that direction? What, boyish/butch?
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Oct 26, 2017 16:32
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They go cross-country skiing... only there is something out there...
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Oct 26, 2017 17:24
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It wouldn't be the first time someone ran into a Sasquatch, demon, or other gribbly freak out just past the edge of civilization.
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Oct 26, 2017 18:10
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Oh poo poo I like that. Dunno how plausible it is that we'd run into a wendigo in the middle of a corp town, but a touch of Horror Christmas could be an interesting twist.
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Oct 26, 2017 18:28
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All 4 are outside on the fringe, daddy gets suprised attacked and is knocked out, it's up to Sasha and Fuzzy to defend dad and Mom. Mom sees Fuzzy in a new light. A little blatant ,. I'm not a writer. Maybe it's a creature maybe it's intra/inter company business,. Also we should have knifespear because it's a school hiatus and we can return it after break
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Oct 26, 2017 18:34
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jagadaishio posted:What, boyish/butch? Yeppers. I didn't want to say too much during the Halloween episode; I did raise an eyebrow on the whole 'Biker' outfit, given the context of Sasha and Fuzzy. Toughy posted:A little blatant ,. I'm not a writer. Maybe it's a creature maybe it's intra/inter company business,. You know what? Blatant be damned; I like my Sasha and Fuzzy cute, adorable, and predictable. They are my high school manga story fix. I want to see Fuzzy ride the 'beast' like a Ton Ton then bury knifespear into its brainpan. Mom then takes Fuzzy shopping for all new wardrobe and make-over; with enough wine and if she squints hard enough, Fuzzy will be the blank-in-law she's always wanted.
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Oct 26, 2017 21:08
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Apologies for the delay. I'm having some health problems at the moment. The update is about 90% done but I'm having a sort of physical block. Not writer's block, but just not feeling well enough to write today. I scheduled an emergency meeting tomorrow with a neurologist and hopefully he or she can help clear up whatever problem I'm having. I'll stow the update and finish it later on after a nap if I can. Took an anti-anxiety med, so that might've been what kept me from finishing as well. I'll attempt to have it in tonight. However this is why my update schedule has slowed down as of late. I'm bursting with creativity and ideas, but concentration has become difficult. Hopefully I can get this cleared up soon so I can continue more at the pace everyone is familiar with.
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Oct 26, 2017 21:22
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drat, IP, take care of yourself!! This is a low priority next to your health. Rooting for good news!!!
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Oct 26, 2017 21:26
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Ice Phisherman posted:Hopefully I can get this cleared up soon so I can continue more at the pace everyone is familiar with. Buddy, we're all behind you, 100%! Please take whatever time you need to feel better; update can wait, your health and well being is what's important. Don't make us 'Misery' you to make sure you're being taken care of.
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Oct 26, 2017 21:40
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We're good, brother. You take care of you and don't worry about a bunch of morons on some dead internet comedy forum.
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Oct 26, 2017 22:33
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Deadmeat5150 posted:. . . don't worry about a bunch of morons on some dead internet comedy forum. I resemble that remark.
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Oct 26, 2017 22:39
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CourValant posted:I resemble that remark. But do you believe in life after love?
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Oct 26, 2017 22:44
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Feel better.Crazycryodude posted:wendigo Don't give him any ideas. Wendigos are the kind of horror that drive entire towns mad, and where you only count as a survivor if you haven't killed yourself a full year later. Psychic mindfucking and deeply traumatic horror.
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Oct 26, 2017 23:05
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