driftfleet | (no subject)

Who: a tiny
Broadcast: voice
Action: on the pathstone!
When: 9/16

[the voice that comes through the feed sounds young and very frightened. she trips over her words and stutters, nervous, speaking very quickly. she's wandering a corridor on the pathstone, pacing rapidly after leaving the room she woke up in, and the sound of her hurried footsteps can be heard in the background.]

Hello? I-I'm sorry. I know I'm not supposed to talk to strangers. But I think I'm lost... Um, really lost. I don't remember how I got here at all, and I tried my dad's phone number but it isn't working.

[a pause. breathing in, breathing out. it doesn't make her sound more calm.]

I don't really know who I'm talking to, but if you can help me get home - I'm really scared. Um, my name is Natalie, I...

[she trails off, and there's a pause as she walks past a window for the first time, looks out into the vast array of stars and blackness out there.]

No way—

[she fumbles with the communicator for a moment, panicked, before the feed abruptly stops.

ooc: natalie/opal is being affected by an age down augment glitch! she'll be younger for about a week.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

That's okay. [Yeah her dad is totally not here. Sorey pats her on the back as they turn into the kitchen and he starts rooting through the cabinets.] I'm sure he'll show up. Maybe he just isn't looking at the comms right now.

Sometimes he gets pretty busy... Maybe he's taking care of my mom. But he'll probably come soon.

[she seems uncomfortable for a moment, moving on]

Can I have mashed potatoes?

[Oh geez.]

Sure, absolutely. [It's not hard to make, and he figures he might as well make some for himself and bring over some replenishing supplies later.

He waits until they've both gotten a decent way through their food before he proposes his idea.] Natalie, you probably have a room here on this ship that's all yours. And if you want, I'll help you find it and get you situated. I can come and check on you too, whenever you want.

But, if you don't want to be alone, we can go back to my ship and you can stay with me. Totally up to you, but that way I'll be right there if you need something, and you won't have to wait around alone.

...Is it okay if I stay with you? I don't like being alone. But, um, I get it if you're too busy or you have other things you need to do.

No way, it's totally okay for you to come stay with me. [And the smile he gives her comes up unbidden, a lot closer to his normal sunny grin than anything else he's handed out these past few days.] I'll have some work and stuff to do so you might get a little bored, but it won't take me long. And you're welcome to come with me if you want, too.

Okay. Um, is it anything I could help you with? Since you're being really nice and all...

I am? [Scratches his cheek.] I mean, it's all engineering stuff...I'm not sure. But you can come along when you want and we can try to figure something out.

It's okay to let yourself be take care of sometimes, you know? In fact, it's really important. So don't think you have to pay me back or anything like that.

Oh! Are you an engineer?

[she hesitates, but nods]

Okay. It is really nice of you, though.

I am here, anyway. [Not so much back home, considering they still use horse-drawn carts.] Do you like that kind of stuff?

I don't really know a lot about it. My dad does construction, though, so I guess that's... kind of similar?

It could be. I'll admit I've never done construction before. Well- I've fixed some roofs on houses, but I've definitely never built anything from the ground up.

Did you used to help your dad with that?

[she shakes her head]

Only adults could work in the company he works for. I'm too little.

[Cocks his head.] You never...? [Well, maybe that sort of thing isn't done in her world? Apprenticeships within the family usually start young, or that's what he'd heard. Still, not being able to be with your guardian even when they're working sounds...lonely.] Well, don't worry about it. I can show you some simple things, and then you can say you're a real spaceship engineer. Would that be cool?

[nodding with a smile]

That would be really cool.

Great, then that's what we'll do. [holds out hand for a fistbump do u know this, small child]

[i'm going to make the executive decision that she does because the image of a tiny fistbump is really cute so

fistbumping!!]

What are you going to show me?

Hmmm, not quite sure yet. [Sorey moves his mashed potatoes around on his plate thoughtfully.] Most of the work I need to do is the dirty kind; cleaning out fuel lines, degreasing moving parts...I can take you down into the access tunnels around the core though, it's pretty neat in there. Kind of like a fort.

A fort? That sounds like fun.

[taking a bite of potatoes]

Never made a fort before? Like out of bedsheets and the like?

[she shakes her head]

Not really. Have you done it before?

I have, a lot. My friend Mikleo and I would-

[........right. He'd almost... Sorey chews on his lip for a second as he reigns himself back in, appetite suddenly gone.] -uh, would do it all the time. I'm kind of an expert by now.

It sounds really fun. Would you show me how?

You bet, Natalie. [Well, he's not gonna be finishing this, so he takes his plate over to scrape clean and wash.] Finish all of that if you can, okay? And after we can go make a fort in my room when we get over to the Huntress.

But you didn't finish all of yours.

Don't worry about me! I ate not all that long ago. [She's so concerned... What a sweet girl.] But we've got to make sure we clean up, since we're going to another ship. You all done?

(no subject)

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