text;

[nostraightlines]

Who: José Ramse and YOU
Broadcast: fleetwide text
Action: the Starstruck
When: now!

Celeste Blackwell went home. At least, I figure that's where they sent her. So much for my plan to be as boring as possible to get sent back.

...

Does anyone here know where I could get sleeping pills or anything like that?


[ Ramse can be found on the bridge of the Starstruck, staring down at the unfortunate moon. He's definitely in a mood. ]

Comments

[nostraightlines]

No. I'm not okay.

[takingkarabusiness]

can i come over?

[nostraightlines]

Sure. I'm on the Starstruck.

text > action

[takingkarabusiness]

be there soon

[ and she does show up in a bit, stirring something in a cup. it doesn't take her long to find him. ]

Okay, so, I really wanted to get you some hot chocolate but it's surprisingly elusive so I kind of cobbled together something I hope is going to be something like chocolate pudding. I hope it's not a total fail.

[nostraightlines]

[ Okay despite his mood that's going to get a little smile out of him. He leans back in his seat on the bridge, turning the one next to him for Kara to sit in. ]

I haven't had chocolate pudding since I was about seven. It's worth a shot.

[takingkarabusiness]

I thought about some kind of coffee and chocolate mix but really, that seems counterproductive to your situation.

[ she sits in the chair, pulling her feet up to rest on the seat as well, wrapping her arms around her knees ]

Let me know how it is?

[nostraightlines]

[ Kara gets a serious nod; he will judge this pudding concoction of hers. ]

Where'd you get chocolate, anyway?

[takingkarabusiness]

Flavored protein from your kitchen's machine, actually. Mixed in with some of the powdered milk, water, vanilla protein...

I'm not promising quality.

[ rocking the chair back and forth idly ]

I thought about trying to make a pizza flavor but decided that would be disgusting and probably put you off of the idea of pizza forever.

[nostraightlines]

Well thank you, both for doing it for me and for not attempting pizza.

[ He tries it... it's still got that weird texture that the protein does, but the taste isn't bad. Not really pudding-y, but not bad. It kinda reminds him of these canned health shakes he and Cole found scavenging once. ]

You know, it's way better than the protein alone. Add some sugar and I might have to make this myself sometime.

[takingkarabusiness]

I'll be sure to keep that in mind for future experimentations. Maybe this could be my real calling here.

[nostraightlines]

I don't know if I'd go that far.

[ He's smiling softly, though, and stirring the "pudding" again. ]

Do you think they actually send people home, when they 'leave'?

[takingkarabusiness]

I can't think of why they wouldn't. Maybe if someone really wants to go somewhere else, the Atroma can make it work. I mean, they brought us here from all sorts of places.

[nostraightlines]

Yeah... I just wish I could know she's okay.

[takingkarabusiness]

I didn't meet her. What's she like?

[nostraightlines]

She's a firecracker. Very outspoken, brave, adventurous, great sense of humor... I don't think I've ever known anyone before with so much personality. She's helped me through a lot.

[ And now she's not here and he'll probably never see her again. It's not like he's a stranger to loss, but he was relying on her a little too heavily to deal with the fleet, to deal with probably never seeing Sheva again either. It's just one person after another being gone. ]

[takingkarabusiness]

She seems great, and resilient. It sounds like she's the sort of person who will be just fine.

Are you going to be okay? Be honest.

[nostraightlines]

...honestly, I'm not sure. I keep losing people and I don't do great on my own.

And it's hell trying to sleep alone here.

[takingkarabusiness]

[ she's still perched up on the chair, half-spinning it side to side. she's looking off into the middle distance ]

The losing people... I don't think that gets easier. But we make it through. Not because anyone can replace the people's we've lost, but because we're a lot stronger and kinder than we might think.

[nostraightlines]

You're talking about yourself being stronger and kinder. Me... I'm getting really tired of loss. It feels like with each one I handle it worse.

[takingkarabusiness]

I believe it of you, too. Sure, I'm talking about my loss, but I wouldn't say it about you, too, if I didn't believe.

I'm not trying to say it should hurt less or you should handle it differently.

[nostraightlines]

It's nice to have someone here who believes in me. If you've got ideas how to handle it better, I'm all ears.

[takingkarabusiness]

It's really, really hard to get me to not believe in my friends. I wouldn't try for it.

How are you handling it now?

[nostraightlines]

Better now that you're here. You're an actual ray of sunshine in this place, you know that?

[ He considers the question, though. ] I'm tired. Scared that it'll just keep happening, the people I care about disappearing or dying and there's nothing I can do about it. I'm just going to wind up alone. I'm thinking about going home and what a horrible mess it might be.

[ That he's going to wind up the Witness, like Cole and Cassie feared. Bitter and alone, with nothing but a mission. ]

[takingkarabusiness]

Maybe that's the true source of my powers.

Okay, it's really not.

[ listens to him, though, sympathetically, and decides to reach out and try to squeeze his hand ]

You're not alone, though. And even I can't tell the future, thankfully.

[nostraightlines]

Not everything's gotta be a power. You're allowed to just be amazing as you.

[ Ramse squeezes back, then sets the cup down and wags a finger at her. ]

Nothing's allowed to happen to you, you know. Even after you go home everything has to be safe and perfect because I said so.