[Honestly, Peony's been looking for an excuse to call Clear up since the festival. He feels strange having seen him without telling Clear so. The commotion at Eos is as good a reason as any, isn't it?]
Hey, Clear. It's Peony. I wanted to make sure you were all right with all this mess. I'll probably be moving out of the tower soon. I'll give you my address then, okay?
Also...
[How does he say this...]
...thanks for playing with me when I turned into a wolf back during that festival. I know you're shy about your face, but I don't think you have anything to be ashamed of.
Mmm. I'm sorry - I didn't mean to make you reveal yourself without knowing who I was like that... since I can talk again, I thought I should let you know.
[Lie - about what? About his strange scent? Peony's never met an android as advanced as Clear, so while he has an inkling of what he might be he's not entirely sure. And even so...]
You didn't lie about anything. Everyone has one or two things they'd rather not talk about. You don't have anything to apologize for.
[So he is some sort of machine. That would explain the lack of scent. His unnatural hearing too, and the way he took to skating so quickly, and plenty of other little oddities. But that doesn't mean he can't feel, and it doesn't make him less of a person.
That's probably easy for someone like Peony to accept since he tends to attribute personalities and feelings to even inanimate objects if he has enough sentimentality attached.]
...hey, Clear. Can I come to where you are for a little bit?
I'm not at the tower right now... [ He's been wandering maskless around Fortune's Lost. Some people in EOS Tower have been acting hostilely to him since the panic started.
Fortune's Lost is far from a safer place, but it feels more like home to him. ]
[He's not hiding himself away, is he? That seems so lonely. Peony presses the palm reader to his face more closely, subconsciously trying to make up for the lack of physical contact.]
[What with moving his things out of Eos Tower, it does take Peony awhile to get there. Still, he knows Clear is upset so he does hurry as quickly as he can. It'll be a good hour before he arrives, out of breath as he makes his way to the rooftop with his hair in disarray and his scarf barely hanging on.]
[It's nice to see him without the mask. Peony trots over and settles beside him, letting his feet hang over the edge too. His arm comes up behind Clear, hand resting on that snowy white hair as he lightly ruffles it.]
[ "Good," is what he wants to say, but he's currently conscious of how everything about him is a (possibly broken) program. He thinks about his reply for a few seconds or so before smiling. ]
[Clear isn't going to make this easy on him, is he?]
Did he? He probably did it because he thought you were cute.
[He'd managed to tickle Clear before by rubbing his ear. If he casually tucks his hair behind it and lets his fingertips play over the shell, maybe he'll invoke that involuntary giggling reaction again...]
[Can he do that? Can he turn sensation on and off at will? It's not impossible, is it. Peony stays still to let Clear fix his scarf, settling with his head on the android's shoulder when he's done.]
Thanks.
[It's so strange. Leaning on him like this, he feels human. Only as a wolf was he able to pick out anything odd about him. Sure, Clear's always been oddly childlike for his apparent age, but Peony's never suspected he wasn't a person.
Kind of like...]
...hey, Clear. Do you mind if I talk about my world for a bit?
When I first came here, I actually thought Auldrant was pretty average. Turns out it's not at all. There's no such thing as a Score on other worlds - that's the memories of our world, from beginning to end. You can even read the Score to tell the future, because it's already set.
[Peony laughs.]
Even time is different! Our years are twice as long as a year here is. By this world's reckoning I'm almost eighty. Eighty! I guess I'm pretty close to your grandpa's age after all. Wild, isn't it?
[Peony kicks his feet childishly in response, calming down only when he has to address the Score again.]
...I always thought it was scary. I hated it. Almost everyone else in the world felt safe that way, though. Like they always had a parent telling them what to do. If you know the future, you just have to follow the Score and you don't have to think for yourself.
[ No, Peony. No. Who's the actual adult here who's past the age of ten? Clear wraps his arms around him in a seat belt kind of way, not in a "I'm a cuddly robot, love me" kind of way. ]
[He allows the contact. Peony even leans into it - Clear might just be doing it to keep him safe, but he finds any sort of embrace to be comfortable.]
Asking questions like that is the first step, isn't it? People who blindly follow aren't thinking. And even when you don't just do what you're told, the idea that you're just doing what's predicted is a little hard to come to terms with if you're the independent sort. But...
[A sheepish grin breaks out across his features.]
I feel like so long as I make my choices based on my thoughts and feelings and not what I'm told, that's enough. Even if it's already been predicted, it's still me. I might be a little stubborn sometimes, but I'm not going to deny myself. If what I honestly decide is in the Score, then I'll do it. If it's not, then I would still do it.
[ A Great Spirit? Clear isn't even sure if he has a spirit to begin with. ]
I'm not. I'm not a great anything.
[ How should he break it to him? He listens for anyone who might be nearby, and modulates his voice in a volume that only someone as far apart as he and Jude are can hear. ]
I'm just a thing.
[ He admits sadly. Sorry for the disappointment. ]
[ Oh, so Clear wasn’t one of Tanagura’s spirits? Jude tilted his head at the mention of ‘thing’ ] If you’re not human that’s one thing but… I wouldn’t really say that makes you a ‘thing’. [ Milla wasn’t a ‘thing’ to him, she was just as much a creature as humans were.
He can tell Clear feels awkward about this just listening to his voice… ] Would you rather not talk about it? That’s fine… I only want to make sure you’re okay. [ He holds his hand to his chest. ] I’m a doctor, even if that specializes in human treatment I’m not beyond caring about people that don’t fit into that category. If you’d like we could exchange numbers? Maybe when you find your friend again I could take a look at them anyway?
[ Unable to help himself with Clear, taking the other’s feelings into serious consideration—whether that was the pollen’s effect or not. ]
… [ Well, if Clear wanted the title of ‘thing’ Jude shouldn’t argue with him. Though, he’s unsure he’ll be calling Clear that. ] Friends…? [ It brings a blush but maybe that’s the pollen, right? Yeah… his hands find themselves behind Jude’s back as he sways at the thought. ]
Of course, contact me anytime. [ Offering his information in exchange for Clears—this do-gooder wouldn’t have said otherwise outside of his environmental expose. ] I mean, if we’re friends then send me anything… [ Still mulling over that five seconds later. ]
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Voice
Hey, Clear. It's Peony. I wanted to make sure you were all right with all this mess. I'll probably be moving out of the tower soon. I'll give you my address then, okay?
Also...
[How does he say this...]
...thanks for playing with me when I turned into a wolf back during that festival. I know you're shy about your face, but I don't think you have anything to be ashamed of.
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Thank you, Peony.
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You didn't lie about anything. Everyone has one or two things they'd rather not talk about. You don't have anything to apologize for.
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That's probably easy for someone like Peony to accept since he tends to attribute personalities and feelings to even inanimate objects if he has enough sentimentality attached.]
...hey, Clear. Can I come to where you are for a little bit?
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Fortune's Lost is far from a safer place, but it feels more like home to him. ]
... but okay.
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[He's not hiding himself away, is he? That seems so lonely. Peony presses the palm reader to his face more closely, subconsciously trying to make up for the lack of physical contact.]
mail
[action]
Clear?
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[ Clear wouldn't really blame Peony if he left him alone, but he could've waited forever too. An hour is a short period of time for him.
With his feet dangling from the rooftop's edge and a clear plastic umbrella over his head, he's ready for whatever Peony has to say now. ]
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[It's nice to see him without the mask. Peony trots over and settles beside him, letting his feet hang over the edge too. His arm comes up behind Clear, hand resting on that snowy white hair as he lightly ruffles it.]
What does that feel like?
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Grandpa used to touch me like this.
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Did he? He probably did it because he thought you were cute.
[He'd managed to tickle Clear before by rubbing his ear. If he casually tucks his hair behind it and lets his fingertips play over the shell, maybe he'll invoke that involuntary giggling reaction again...]
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It's crooked.
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Thanks.
[It's so strange. Leaning on him like this, he feels human. Only as a wolf was he able to pick out anything odd about him. Sure, Clear's always been oddly childlike for his apparent age, but Peony's never suspected he wasn't a person.
Kind of like...]
...hey, Clear. Do you mind if I talk about my world for a bit?
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He relaxes after a second. He also stops forcing a smile. ]
Go ahead. Do what you want.
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[Peony laughs.]
Even time is different! Our years are twice as long as a year here is. By this world's reckoning I'm almost eighty. Eighty! I guess I'm pretty close to your grandpa's age after all. Wild, isn't it?
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[ Wait a minute. ]
And grandpa, you shouldn't hang your feet over the edge. That's dangerous.
wow, I never got this?
[Peony kicks his feet childishly in response, calming down only when he has to address the Score again.]
...I always thought it was scary. I hated it. Almost everyone else in the world felt safe that way, though. Like they always had a parent telling them what to do. If you know the future, you just have to follow the Score and you don't have to think for yourself.
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[ No, Peony. No. Who's the actual adult here who's past the age of ten? Clear wraps his arms around him in a seat belt kind of way, not in a "I'm a cuddly robot, love me" kind of way. ]
How do you know if you're thinking for yourself?
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Asking questions like that is the first step, isn't it? People who blindly follow aren't thinking. And even when you don't just do what you're told, the idea that you're just doing what's predicted is a little hard to come to terms with if you're the independent sort. But...
[A sheepish grin breaks out across his features.]
I feel like so long as I make my choices based on my thoughts and feelings and not what I'm told, that's enough. Even if it's already been predicted, it's still me. I might be a little stubborn sometimes, but I'm not going to deny myself. If what I honestly decide is in the Score, then I'll do it. If it's not, then I would still do it.
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Mmmm... [ What if even free will was programmed though? What if they're all programmed? What if Clear was made to watch The Matrix? ]
I still don't like it... the idea that everything I'm doing is pre-programmed.
never forget
overflow
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I'm not. I'm not a great anything.
[ How should he break it to him? He listens for anyone who might be nearby, and modulates his voice in a volume that only someone as far apart as he and Jude are can hear. ]
I'm just a thing.
[ He admits sadly. Sorry for the disappointment. ]
nice gif
He can tell Clear feels awkward about this just listening to his voice… ] Would you rather not talk about it? That’s fine… I only want to make sure you’re okay. [ He holds his hand to his chest. ] I’m a doctor, even if that specializes in human treatment I’m not beyond caring about people that don’t fit into that category. If you’d like we could exchange numbers? Maybe when you find your friend again I could take a look at them anyway?
[ Unable to help himself with Clear, taking the other’s feelings into serious consideration—whether that was the pollen’s effect or not. ]
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But if it's all right, I would like to continue being friends with you. Can I really send you messages?
[ Speak now or forever hold your peace as Clear turns Jude's inbox into his personal instagram account. ]
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Of course, contact me anytime. [ Offering his information in exchange for Clears—this do-gooder wouldn’t have said otherwise outside of his environmental expose. ] I mean, if we’re friends then send me anything… [ Still mulling over that five seconds later. ]