Now you're just spoiling me! Thank you. [ He'd better be polite about it, he's not kidding about the spoiling, he doesn't always get to have all the chicken he wants. ]
You did and I'm glad we're doing it, even though I hope you know you didn't have to. [ Hawks crosses his legs as he sits down with the proffered wings, he will definitely keep the foil for the bones, he has no interest in eating them. ]
Also, tea is good with me, thanks. [ He didn't bring anything, but he'll have to return the favour sometime, maybe swoop in with some snacks for her. ]
( Marrow, Hawks, there's some good marrow in there. (Probably.) But not everyone is an enjoyer of sucking out marrow, Alex won't have a word to say either way. )
I wanted to.
( She pours some water into both cups, rinsing them out, then dumps it off to the side and instead opens the tea. Once she has one cup full, she hands it over to him. )
It's a green tea, not terrible, but not great.
( Pouring her own, she lifts it in his direction. )
Cheers! [ Hawks holds up his cup and then sips the tea without complaint. ]
It's good, don't worry about it. I'm really easy to please. [ That is so very true, when it comes to food and drink. ]
Alright now then. [ He rubs his hands together but then thinks twice and takes his gloves off before picking up one of the wings and taking an enthusiastic bite. ]
( Alex breathes out with a laughing sort of sound. )
Right, right. Easy to please is easy to work with, I won't complain.
( She bites into her watermelon slice, enjoying the cool sensation of its flesh and juice in her mouth, then sliding down her throat as she chews and swallows. It's a nice day, such as these things can be counted in the situation they're in. The beach doesn't have anyone else around on this section. The waterpark is visible around the far edge of the bay, bots or people like scattered ants moving around within it. The waves lap at the shore, and while birds dot the water's surface, today there's no dragon.
She wonders why there's a dragon in the first place, and if that came from someone's home, or was just here because Echo thought it should be. )
Do you think resource scarcity is something we'll have to worry about?
( Will Aurora be corrupted or overtaken like what that doctor had faced in a sister bubble city? She also belatedly realises that's not saving anything about any mood, and leans her arms on her folded legs, laughing a little. )
Sorry. Better to just have a good day than wonder about that. How're the wings?
[ Hawks cleans the bones and discards them carefully, before he picks up the next one. At her question he considers it for a moment, glancing around them. ]
Based on what I have seen right now, I would say no, but considering how generous everything has been I would wonder if that generosity could end. [ He doesn't look like he minds the topic of conversation, but he beams at her question. ]
The wings are excellent. You weren't underselling your talents at all.
( Alex grimaces. She doesn't incline herself toward believing that anything short of people going out of their way to sabotage the situation for the illusion of a power grab would make things go that poorly, but she also wonders if maybe it's not the worst idea to stock up on non-perishables and figure out a garden.
You know, just in case. )
We're both positive thinkers, huh?
( She smiles, a bit amused and fully self aware of the jest in her words. But his beaming response to how the wings are has her grinning back, no shadows left in her expression. )
That's great! Like I said, I'm not quite as good at them as Caleb is, but they're still good. I'm glad you like them!
( And she is. It feels nice to be able to feed someone and get a compliment out of it, because that soothes both her desire to help people around her, and the fact she absolutely enjoys words of affirmation. Sue her. (No, don't sue her, she has nothing, there's no economy here.) )
Hey, I'm an optimist, but I'm also realistic. [ Hawks is both of those things. He likes to see the good in most situations, but at the same time he needs to remember things like that to ensure he survives. It's instinctive, and probably indicative of his childhood, if someone wanted to psychoanalyze it. ]
I really do. [ Hawks states this as fact. ] Chicken is the best really, in general, who knew birds were so tasty? [ Aside from him. He knows. ]
( She admits, though she does for various reasons not often point out her own realistic tendencies. She has far more of them than optimistic ones, but she likes to be optimistic for the people in her life. Sadly, it doesn't always pan out.
She's never been too good at the placation that things will be okay when they really won't. )
Mmm, maybe all our ancestors who domesticated birds. ( She says this as a joke, since it is. She's carnivore enough at heart to enjoy all kinds of meat, but chicken is her favourite as well. )
I have more or less? I don't really enjoy the older aesthetic of those apartments they set us up with to start, but the bots did their best making them seem human ready. I'll start looking for somewhere to move after we're back from this next mission I think.
( The big steps backward in technology and familiarity without it being filled in with nostalgia means she's not so comfortable in those apartments, with their high humming from older lights. But they're serviceable, and she's not that kind of finicky. More practical, if she's here for a longer haul. )
Next to the ones who figured out starting fires on their own.
( ... Because that's how chicken gets cooked. Right. She's onto something here! )
Right, a balcony you can fly in and out from... there's got to be places like that in this sprawling mess. Somewhere.
( She looks like she's thinking about it (because she is), tapping a finger to her chin before she takes a sip of her tea. More watermelon is due next, but she's enjoying the relaxed nature of the largely unpopulated beach and the waves lapping at the shore. Just a little, small bit like home. )
[ He knows for a fact that he doesn't need to cook his chicken but he definitely prefers it cooked, seasoned and preferably fried. That's a weird tidbit so he doesn't mention it. ]
Yeah, that's the one thing I like about my apartment at home. Huge balcony. [ Nothing about it feels like his space, he didn't even decorate it, but it is a penthouse with a huge balcony. ]
Probably, but I'm not sure if we're supposed to move, I mean the bots said go to this place so I did. I don't want to complain too much. Not sure what the consequences of that is.
( Look Mr. Predator Stomach just invite people out for sashimi and everyone can enjoy raw meat together! ... Or any of a number of different raw dishes popular around the world. Or give Alex ideas. She enjoys cooking challenges. )
I know people living in all sorts of places outside the apartments. Did you hear from the bots that if we earn enough you know... points... ( she makes air quotes around the word ) ... you can ask for places you know from home to be remade around here. There's a castle somewhere in the north area I think? And a monastery in that direction too. A big balcony shouldn't be too much to hope for if it helps you feel free, right?
( She says, mostly yearning for her motorcycle. He can fly fast: she can run fast and that isn't remotely super anything. She takes another bite of watermelon. )
No, actually, I didn't. Someone did tell me that we pay for some things with points, but no one's asked me for anything at the regular stores, and I did what was suggested to me at the waterpark, I guess, for points. [ That is something, he thinks. ]
I don't know what place I would ask for. Maybe Fukuoka Tower. It's great for perching.
[ Yes he's aware he's just said a very bird thing, nevermind that. ]
Oh! Yeah, it's one of the weird little things with points... some of the other ones are getting stuff from home here, like books or vehicles. Makes me want to ask for my work motorcycle.
( Where she sounds a little amused. The amusement lingers at his ask - a tower great for perching - but given his size and his wings, it does make sense. )
Last tower I was in got attacked by a Wanderer, so definitely not there. I'm not sure I'd want anywhere from home here. They'd be missing the people... and the place alone isn't the same when I know I can't see any of those people at the same time.
( She does consider... then snorts a little, setting her watermelon rind down on the lid of the container the rest is in. )
I could say my apartment for familiarity, but it's just an apartment. Nicer than the ones here, but not amazingly different. Oh, what if I asked for one of the floating islands? You'd probably have fun with that too!
( Alex pauses, then laughs at her own idea. )
In fact you'd probably be one of the few people who could even reach it if it ended up here.
[ Hawks laughs at that. ] Yeah, I could have fun on a floating island. [ He definitely could reach it, but he'd be just as interested in seeing who else could. He's nosy like that. ]
I like Fukuoka Tower and my agency the best probably, but I don't need my agency here for any particular reason. [ It would just encourage him to work more. He polishes off the last chicken wing and adds the cleaned bones back into the container. ]
I don't really like my apartment, but I do like my huge shower. Maybe I can just upgrade my bathroom or something. Lots of space to get my feathers all clean.
( An agency without its people sounds a little strange to Alex; but it's why she'd never ask for her HQ. There's no lingering desire to miss familiar faces more than she's already been doing. )
I wonder if the bots here can help with that or not. Get you set up with a full walk in shower and multiple nozzles... or else we can make you a really big, curtained off bird-bath.
( Lips twitching, she ends up giving him a wink. Giant bath-tubs aren't bad ideas in general, but what she remembers from Japanese bathing is a little more involved than what's more common on the mainland. )
You got through the chicken fast. How big of a portion is what you really need? I was guessing blind this time around.
[ Hawks laughs easily, he can't remember the last time he splashed around in a bath. Not for the purpose of cleaning at least, and not with all of his feathers, but it does feel nice to have a soak. ]
That would be way too big to fit in any apartment I think, but having a shower big enough to stretch out one wing at a time to get them all wet would be nicer than cleaning them detached. I can live with less but... [ But it's nicer. Easier. Feels better. ]
This is probably fine for now, but I'll eat again later. [ He's quick to assure her. ] I fly a lot and burn a lot of calories.
( She says this while tapping her mostly empty thermos. Alex seems to realize what she's doing a moment later, picking it up and quirking an eyebrow at Hawks. )
Any more tea?
( Big actions, big metabolism. Alex smiles, shaking her head, because she really can understand. She eats more than anyone would expect, and now she suspects part of what that happens is living in her heart. That's... some other day's Alex problem. )
If only you could tolerate what goes into them, you'd be the best cake tester anyone could ask for.
I don't think I've ever been to a public bathhouse. [ Honestly the list of things he hasn't done is pretty long and extensive, but this is pretty innocuous as far as things go. ]
No thank you on the tea, but as for cake, I can probably get away with eating a slice but that'd definitely be my limit for the day.
You know, I'm not sure. [ Hawks chuckles. ] They might have some around my house, but I'm not home all that much and I probably wouldn't have considered it anyway. I do have a very nice shower.
[ He might consider it now, not that that helps, but maybe sometime he'll get the chance, just to say he did it. ]
I haven't eaten a lot of cake. [ It's not something he gets for himself but he hums thoughtfully. ] Oh, we were at this gala that had some kind of white cake with strawberries and whipped cream, that was really good.
... my spelling was truly unique last tag hahaha thank you for your forebearance
When you put it that way... now I want to know what makes a shower 'very nice' for a guy with a wingspan like yours.
( She is imagining the equivalent of a walk in closet only a shower. She's pretty sure people have those. Waterfall showerheads and all! )
Okay, done! Next cake I make will have strawberries and vanilla with whipped cream on top. Do you remember if the cake was super puffed up and airy kind of fluffy, or more like bread levels of fluffy?
If I can stretch out one wing to full size, I'm happy because I can do them one at a time. I have three showerheads. But finding a space that's like twelve or thirteen feet is pretty hard. I prefer that, but I can also detach my feathers if I have to, which is what I'm doing now.
[ He smiled, really he can get by without it, he knows he's spoiled in his Commission apartment. The world's not naturally made for heteromorphs.]
Oh you're spoiling me now. [ No one has ever offered to cook for him before, much less twice. Honestly the chicken wings are the best gift he's ever been given. ]
Ugh, but you said that's painful. We have got to find a better solution.
( He might consider it negligible, but Alex has never enjoyed knowing her friends are in pain. Especially over ordinary things. When she'd been learning how much pain Caleb had been hiding... or when she'd learned how to help mitigate the pain of Zayne's Evol acting up and hurting him, she couldn't stay silent and do nothing. It's just not who she is.
Ergo, Hawks is unceremoniously being co-opted into a "accessibility problem solving" program in her head. )
Hah! Who's spoiling who? I happen to like baking, though I don't always get it right the first try. But let me think, fluffy... sounds like either sponge cake or angel cake. With strawberries? Both would be good...
( Tapping her chin as she continues the mental debate over which kind of cake it likely had been. )
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velocityraptor) wrote2025-06-27 12:24 pm
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You did and I'm glad we're doing it, even though I hope you know you didn't have to. [ Hawks crosses his legs as he sits down with the proffered wings, he will definitely keep the foil for the bones, he has no interest in eating them. ]
Also, tea is good with me, thanks. [ He didn't bring anything, but he'll have to return the favour sometime, maybe swoop in with some snacks for her. ]
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I wanted to.
( She pours some water into both cups, rinsing them out, then dumps it off to the side and instead opens the tea. Once she has one cup full, she hands it over to him. )
It's a green tea, not terrible, but not great.
( Pouring her own, she lifts it in his direction. )
Cheers!
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It's good, don't worry about it. I'm really easy to please. [ That is so very true, when it comes to food and drink. ]
Alright now then. [ He rubs his hands together but then thinks twice and takes his gloves off before picking up one of the wings and taking an enthusiastic bite. ]
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Right, right. Easy to please is easy to work with, I won't complain.
( She bites into her watermelon slice, enjoying the cool sensation of its flesh and juice in her mouth, then sliding down her throat as she chews and swallows. It's a nice day, such as these things can be counted in the situation they're in. The beach doesn't have anyone else around on this section. The waterpark is visible around the far edge of the bay, bots or people like scattered ants moving around within it. The waves lap at the shore, and while birds dot the water's surface, today there's no dragon.
She wonders why there's a dragon in the first place, and if that came from someone's home, or was just here because Echo thought it should be. )
Do you think resource scarcity is something we'll have to worry about?
( Will Aurora be corrupted or overtaken like what that doctor had faced in a sister bubble city? She also belatedly realises that's not saving anything about any mood, and leans her arms on her folded legs, laughing a little. )
Sorry. Better to just have a good day than wonder about that. How're the wings?
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Based on what I have seen right now, I would say no, but considering how generous everything has been I would wonder if that generosity could end. [ He doesn't look like he minds the topic of conversation, but he beams at her question. ]
The wings are excellent. You weren't underselling your talents at all.
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You know, just in case. )
We're both positive thinkers, huh?
( She smiles, a bit amused and fully self aware of the jest in her words. But his beaming response to how the wings are has her grinning back, no shadows left in her expression. )
That's great! Like I said, I'm not quite as good at them as Caleb is, but they're still good. I'm glad you like them!
( And she is. It feels nice to be able to feed someone and get a compliment out of it, because that soothes both her desire to help people around her, and the fact she absolutely enjoys words of affirmation. Sue her. (No, don't sue her, she has nothing, there's no economy here.) )
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I really do. [ Hawks states this as fact. ] Chicken is the best really, in general, who knew birds were so tasty? [ Aside from him. He knows. ]
Did you manage to get settled alright?
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( She admits, though she does for various reasons not often point out her own realistic tendencies. She has far more of them than optimistic ones, but she likes to be optimistic for the people in her life. Sadly, it doesn't always pan out.
She's never been too good at the placation that things will be okay when they really won't. )
Mmm, maybe all our ancestors who domesticated birds. ( She says this as a joke, since it is. She's carnivore enough at heart to enjoy all kinds of meat, but chicken is her favourite as well. )
I have more or less? I don't really enjoy the older aesthetic of those apartments they set us up with to start, but the bots did their best making them seem human ready. I'll start looking for somewhere to move after we're back from this next mission I think.
( The big steps backward in technology and familiarity without it being filled in with nostalgia means she's not so comfortable in those apartments, with their high humming from older lights. But they're serviceable, and she's not that kind of finicky. More practical, if she's here for a longer haul. )
What about you?
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I've lived in worse places. It's okay. I wouldn't mind a balcony, or a bigger space, but it's fine.
[ He could put up with both of those things, especially in a home he's chosen, but this place isn't that. ]
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( ... Because that's how chicken gets cooked. Right. She's onto something here! )
Right, a balcony you can fly in and out from... there's got to be places like that in this sprawling mess. Somewhere.
( She looks like she's thinking about it (because she is), tapping a finger to her chin before she takes a sip of her tea. More watermelon is due next, but she's enjoying the relaxed nature of the largely unpopulated beach and the waves lapping at the shore. Just a little, small bit like home. )
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Yeah, that's the one thing I like about my apartment at home. Huge balcony. [ Nothing about it feels like his space, he didn't even decorate it, but it is a penthouse with a huge balcony. ]
Probably, but I'm not sure if we're supposed to move, I mean the bots said go to this place so I did. I don't want to complain too much. Not sure what the consequences of that is.
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I know people living in all sorts of places outside the apartments. Did you hear from the bots that if we earn enough you know... points... ( she makes air quotes around the word ) ... you can ask for places you know from home to be remade around here. There's a castle somewhere in the north area I think? And a monastery in that direction too. A big balcony shouldn't be too much to hope for if it helps you feel free, right?
( She says, mostly yearning for her motorcycle. He can fly fast: she can run fast and that isn't remotely super anything. She takes another bite of watermelon. )
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I don't know what place I would ask for. Maybe Fukuoka Tower. It's great for perching.
[ Yes he's aware he's just said a very bird thing, nevermind that. ]
Is there somewhere you want to recreate?
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( Where she sounds a little amused. The amusement lingers at his ask - a tower great for perching - but given his size and his wings, it does make sense. )
Last tower I was in got attacked by a Wanderer, so definitely not there. I'm not sure I'd want anywhere from home here. They'd be missing the people... and the place alone isn't the same when I know I can't see any of those people at the same time.
( She does consider... then snorts a little, setting her watermelon rind down on the lid of the container the rest is in. )
I could say my apartment for familiarity, but it's just an apartment. Nicer than the ones here, but not amazingly different. Oh, what if I asked for one of the floating islands? You'd probably have fun with that too!
( Alex pauses, then laughs at her own idea. )
In fact you'd probably be one of the few people who could even reach it if it ended up here.
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I like Fukuoka Tower and my agency the best probably, but I don't need my agency here for any particular reason. [ It would just encourage him to work more. He polishes off the last chicken wing and adds the cleaned bones back into the container. ]
I don't really like my apartment, but I do like my huge shower. Maybe I can just upgrade my bathroom or something. Lots of space to get my feathers all clean.
no subject
I wonder if the bots here can help with that or not. Get you set up with a full walk in shower and multiple nozzles... or else we can make you a really big, curtained off bird-bath.
( Lips twitching, she ends up giving him a wink. Giant bath-tubs aren't bad ideas in general, but what she remembers from Japanese bathing is a little more involved than what's more common on the mainland. )
You got through the chicken fast. How big of a portion is what you really need? I was guessing blind this time around.
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That would be way too big to fit in any apartment I think, but having a shower big enough to stretch out one wing at a time to get them all wet would be nicer than cleaning them detached. I can live with less but... [ But it's nicer. Easier. Feels better. ]
This is probably fine for now, but I'll eat again later. [ He's quick to assure her. ] I fly a lot and burn a lot of calories.
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( She says this while tapping her mostly empty thermos. Alex seems to realize what she's doing a moment later, picking it up and quirking an eyebrow at Hawks. )
Any more tea?
( Big actions, big metabolism. Alex smiles, shaking her head, because she really can understand. She eats more than anyone would expect, and now she suspects part of what that happens is living in her heart. That's... some other day's Alex problem. )
If only you could tolerate what goes into them, you'd be the best cake tester anyone could ask for.
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No thank you on the tea, but as for cake, I can probably get away with eating a slice but that'd definitely be my limit for the day.
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( Genuinely curious. As far as she knows, they're pretty popular in Japan. Maybe not the same degree as they once were. )
Oooh so we have a one slice limit? Hmm, then tell me, what kind of cake do you enjoy when you brace yourself for eating any?
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[ He might consider it now, not that that helps, but maybe sometime he'll get the chance, just to say he did it. ]
I haven't eaten a lot of cake. [ It's not something he gets for himself but he hums thoughtfully. ] Oh, we were at this gala that had some kind of white cake with strawberries and whipped cream, that was really good.
... my spelling was truly unique last tag hahaha thank you for your forebearance
( She is imagining the equivalent of a walk in closet only a shower. She's pretty sure people have those. Waterfall showerheads and all! )
Okay, done! Next cake I make will have strawberries and vanilla with whipped cream on top. Do you remember if the cake was super puffed up and airy kind of fluffy, or more like bread levels of fluffy?
Haha don't even worry about it
[ He smiled, really he can get by without it, he knows he's spoiled in his Commission apartment. The world's not naturally made for heteromorphs.]
Oh you're spoiling me now. [ No one has ever offered to cook for him before, much less twice. Honestly the chicken wings are the best gift he's ever been given. ]
I remember it being very fluffy and light.
❤︎❤︎❤︎!
( He might consider it negligible, but Alex has never enjoyed knowing her friends are in pain. Especially over ordinary things. When she'd been learning how much pain Caleb had been hiding... or when she'd learned how to help mitigate the pain of Zayne's Evol acting up and hurting him, she couldn't stay silent and do nothing. It's just not who she is.
Ergo, Hawks is unceremoniously being co-opted into a "accessibility problem solving" program in her head. )
Hah! Who's spoiling who? I happen to like baking, though I don't always get it right the first try. But let me think, fluffy... sounds like either sponge cake or angel cake. With strawberries? Both would be good...
( Tapping her chin as she continues the mental debate over which kind of cake it likely had been. )
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[ He really hadn't meant to make it sound so dire. It's not. He barely notices. It's easy to ignore. ]
I'm sorry, I didn't ask. I was kind of busy networking. You barely get to eat at these things, mind you that always have plenty to drink.
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